Stripes
by sheepskin
Summary: Riley Hyde is a psycho cat-girl who excels in only one thing; being extremely annoying. So when she is forced into joining Stryker's team, all sorts of fun goings on should happen.
1. Putting The Cat In The Bag

**AN: So…this is my second fanfic but my first on X-Men…and you really needed to know that. XD Anyways, I have dear ol' Kat to thank for this 'cos without her I wouldn't have even done it. I hope you like it. It's a story full of random goings on, which is what most of my stories are about but ya' know. This first chapter is pretty crappy so don't kill me over it _ I'll let you get reading now.**

**Do I really need to put a disclaimer? REALLY?!**

**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Picture a forest. Tall dark trees and mist hanging around the edges. Now you're inside this forest. It's a path and its strewn with leaves and mud is sticking to your shoes. You look up at the moon through the trees and then quite suddenly, one of these trees giggled. What would you do? Well, first, maybe you want to know why the tree giggled. Because trees don't usually giggle.

The reason behind this abnormal tree behaviour was because a girl was sitting on a branch. She was stood, actually, crouched like she was preparing to leap down and tear off some poor rabbits head. A long slim tail was helping her balance. It was patterned with the markings of a white tiger and seemingly attached to her head, amid the tangled mess of black hair was a pair of two large tiger ears. She was dressed in grey tracksuit bottoms and a black tank top. Odd black stripes dotted her arms and seemed to fade as they reached her shoulders. All in all the girl was a very strange sight, sat up there in that tree.

Her name, was in fact, Riley Hyde and she wasn't always a giggling tree dweller. She used to have a family and a very happy life. She even won a scholarship to a very prestigious school. That's where it all started to go wrong. That was when she developed her mutant abilities, and apparently, turned into a complete psycho. At first her parents took her to a psychiatrist, convinced their daughter was just having a few problems. Nothing that couldn't be solved with a few sessions. Well, that didn't go down too well.

The first session Riley didn't talk at all. This was cast away as nerves and in the second session things were looking up when she started to tell the doctor of these strange markings appearing on her arms. But when he asked to seem them she screamed and attempted to throw herself out of the window. The third session (with the windows firmly locked) her tail sprouted half way through it.

Well, that didn't go down to well.

The doctor ran screaming from the office, her parents soon joined him. Confused and scared this time Riley hurled herself straight _through_ the window and ran away. She hadn't been seen since.

But enough of the past and back to the present.

Clutched tightly in one hand were three small acorns and in the other she was holding tightly onto the branch. She was currently in the process of preparing herself to hurl the acorns at some unsuspecting rambler. It didn't take long for him to show up. He was sauntering down the middle of the path like he owned the place and Riley didn't like the look of him on sight.

She closed one eye and stuck her tongue between her teeth in concentration. Grinning slightly she released the acorn and watched with happiness as it zoomed through the air and hit him on the side of his head. Riley squealed and jumped up and down on the branch in utter delight. The man had stopped in the middle of the path now and had tilted to his head to one side. He seemed to be listening for something but Riley wasn't paying attention and was busy collecting more acorns. She grabbed a rather large one and shifted on the branch so she was once again facing the man.

It soared through the air in a perfect arc before falling into its descent and swiftly declined towards the man's head. Suddenly his hand shot up and he caught the acorn in his hand. Riley watched in amazement, her ears twitching as he crushed the acorn in his palm. He dropped the pieces to the floor and then his head snapped up and he stared right at her.

Startled and caught unawares, Riley stumbled backwards, completely forgetting she was on a very narrow branch. A shriek escaped her lips as she fell and landed with hard thud on the ground below, right at the scary man's feet. Lying on the ground, at this angle, she could see his big black boots and the edges of his long black coat. She watched as it swished round his legs as he moved so he was standing next to her head.

She shifted her head and craned her neck so she could just see the ends of his hands. He flexed his fingers and she watched with a mixture of horror and fascination as his fingernails grew longer and sharper. It was the last thing she saw before a hand grabbed her back of her neck and she was suddenly hauled off the ground and slammed up against the very tree she had fallen out of.

"Well, well, well," he grinned, revealing very sharp fangs. "What do we have here?"

Riley swallowed nervously and struggled slightly under his painful grip around her neck. A second hand came up and she flinched as something cold and sharp slid down her cheek.

"I-I'm sorry," she gasped. "I didn't mean to throw the acorn at you. Well, I did mean to, but I wouldn't have done it if I'd known you were gonna' kill me." She glanced at his face hopefully.

"Kitty Kat, I'm not gonna' kill you," the man smiled sympathetically and Riley mentally breathed a sigh of relief. "But by the time I'm finished with you, you're gonna' wish you was dead."

Riley had heard enough. Her left ear twitched, her tail wrapped around her waist and she opened her mouth, but before she even got the chance to scream her lungs out, she was hoisted into the air and landed with a thump over his left shoulder. The man started walking.

"Where are we going?" Riley asked after a few minutes.

He didn't answer.

"I just wanted to know, in case I need my toothbrush. Like teeth clean ya' know."

"Shut up," the man growled.

Riley shifted herself so her elbows were leaning on his back and her head reste din her hands. She sighed heavily.

"Can I at least know your name?" She asked.

"Creed, Victor Creed." He muttered.

Riley grinned. "I'm Riley, Riley Hyde. But you probably already know that seeing as you're kidnapping me. Unless this is a one off kidnapping. Hey, its 'cos of the acorn isn't it? Have you still got it? I'm kinda' of hungry."

"Do you ever shut up?"

"No, not really." Riley answered happily.

"Well, I advise you do. Before somethin' happens to this fancy tail of your's."

Immediately Riley wrapped her tail around her waist and her ears flatted against her head. The rest of their short walk was spent in silence. Riley got the feeling this man didn't talk much. Or maybe he was just shy. She giggled at the thought of a big scary man like him being shy. The trees thinned out and they had soon exited the forest and ended up on the edge of a large field.

Riley turned on his shoulder so she could look over her shoulder. She hadn't been out of the forest in a long time and she wondered what the world looked like now. She was disappointed to see it was the same. Grumbling to herself she went to turn back but something big and black caught her eye. It was a large jet and it was parked right in the middle of the field.

"Very subtle," she remarked.

Victor didn't answer. Not that she expected him too. Even after being over his shoulder for only five minutes she had worked out he didn't want to be here. Kidnapping her. So someone else must have sent him. She tried to think of all the possible reasons someone would kidnap her. Well, he was a mutant so it was obviously not someone who wanted mutants dead. Riley shook her head. No one knew her apart from the psycho doctor and her parents, who had probably forgotten her by now. Before she could use anymore brainpower on thinking she was suddenly flying through the air and then landing on a hard metal floor with a loud thud.

"Sheesh.I can walk you know." She groaned and looked up, freezing at the sight before her.

She was surrounded by men. All of them muscular, evil looking, weapon holding, men. She backed away, shuffling until she hit the back of the plane. Victor walked in and threw himself down onto one of the benches. He smirked at her before the doors closed and she was trapped.

She said the first thing that came to mind.

"Gang rape."

A man snorted. He was holding a sword. He glanced across at her, his brown eyes raking up and down her small body.

"You've got a tail." He stated.

"No shit." Riley answered before she cursed herself for her stupidity.

_Lesson one in the art of kidnapping; never provoke your kidnappers. No matter how stupid they seem to be._

Before Sword Guy could open his mouth to say something witty another man with greying hair smiled and leaned down so he was face to face with Riley.

"Riley Hyde?" He said.

"Nope," Riley grinned. "She's my evil twin sister. I'm…I'm Amy."

"Jeez, she's worse than Wade."

"Who's Wade?"

"Hola." Sword Guy waved, grinning madly.

"Riley!" Someone snapped angrily and she turned to see the old man with glaring at her.

"Okay, you got me. I'm Riley. Now what do you want?"

The man sat back and smirked down at her in what he though was a threatening way. It didn't work though, since the plane chose to lurch to the right at that exact moment and the man paled, a look of fear coming over his face as he clutched the handle. Riley slid sideways, slamming into someone's legs. She clung to them like a monkey with a grip of iron. The plane steadied out and there was the sound of raised voices but Riley wasn't paying attention. Her eyes were closed tightly and her jaw clenched.

"There's somethin' on my leg," a deep voice said.

"Yeah, it's me you idiot." Riley snapped, not caring who she was talking to.

"I'm just going to cut to the chase,' she heard the old guy say. "My name is William Stryker, and I want you to join our team."

Riley cracked open an eye. "Do I have a choice?"

"No."

"Then my answer is yes!" She grinned wildly.

This was followed by a series of groans and then someone threw up.


	2. Painted Cheshire Cat

**AN: Ahhhh, I'm insanely chuffed with the response to this ^^ You guys are all awesome, seriously, I loves you. XD Anyways, its one o'clock in the morning and I have to get up at 7:30 tomorrow, drink lots of coffee and got to a Halloween party. So if I don't see/hear/communicate telepathically from you before then; Happy Halloween, me loves. Hope you like this chapter, I think I sort of failed at the end, but I'm having fun writing it and that's the main thing…Isn't it? D; Let me know xP Hope you likes it =) xxxxxxx**

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Riley stared in disgust at the pile of sick on the floor. Her blue eyes slowly travelled upwards until they met with James. He was currently hanging in head in shame. Or it could have been because that pile of sick had just exited his mouth. The plane lurched and the sick slid along the floor of the plane towards Riley. She squealed and shot up the leg, coming face to face with a blonde haired man chewing gum.

"Uh, hi there!" She grinned sheepishly. Before Fred could even begin to wonder why this strange girl was perched on his lap, she spun round and pointed at James. "What's up with him?"

"Uh, he don't like flying." Fred answered slowly.

Riley looked across at James who gave her a brief smile before he frowned and looked back down at his feet. His face was a pale sickly colour and he groaned loudly. As he leant forward Riley caught sight of the shiny metal dog tags that swung down from his neck. She gasped loudly and gave a slight squeak causing all six men to look over at her curiously.

"Sh-shiny!" She breathed, pointing excitedly at James's neck.

"What's wrong with her?" Zero muttered.

Wade smirked. "She's seen James's face, poor thing. She'll be scarred for life."

But Riley wasn't listening. She had crawled off of Fred's lap, leapt over the drifting pile of sick and landed with cat like agility beside James. So fast, in fact, did she do this, that Bradley had to dive out the way for fear of being ambushed by her. Perching precariously on the bench, she stared up adoringly at James, or at least, at the dog tags swinging from around his neck.

"I'm worried." Wade stated.

"She seems to be attracted to the shine." Stryker remarked in his all-knowing voice.

Suddenly Bradley raised a hand to his head and closed his eyes. "We're going down." He said and all the men seemed to brace themselves. Unfortunately no one thought to tell Riley this and as the plane swerved she was flung to the other side of the plane and landed heavily in Wade's lap.

"Eager aren't we?" He grinned.

Riley grunted in response and pushed herself up onto her knees. This earned a large groan and wince from Wade as her sharp elbows made contact with his crown jewels. All of the men automatically winced and shifted in their seats. Riley looked up at Wade innocently.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She said sweetly. "Did I hurt you?"

-

Once off the plane Riley, not knowing where to go, trotted along after Wade, James and Victor as they headed into the kitchen. She slumped down into a chair at the table and watched with bored interest as they made sandwiches the size of small trucks. Wade slid into the seat next to hers and grinned down at her through a mouthful of tuna. Riley's nose wrinkled in disgust and she mentally vowed never to eat fish again.

"So Stripes," he said finally. "What can you do?"

"Stripes…?" Riley frowned.

"Yeah, you're covered in 'em." Wade gestured to the markings on her arms. "So what can you do?"

Riley swallowed and looked over at James and Victor who were listening in. Although they were trying not to show it.

"Hey look!" She suddenly shouted. "It's a…a toaster! Wow." Riley stared at it in fake amazement. A last ditch attempt to distract the men.

"Yeah, you know what that does? It makes toast." Wade laughed.

"Now stop avoiding the question." Victor growled.

Riley opened her mouth, her eyes wide but before she could point out another kitchen appliance Zero sauntered in and stared at her coolly.

"You. With me." He ordered shortly.

"Okay!" Riley said brightly, utterly relieved to be away from the prying eyes of Victor.

Zero looked at her in surprise but shrugged and walked out. Riley waved at the men before scurrying out after him, her tail swinging in time to her steps. She hurried along after Zero, having to jog alongside him as she struggled to keep up with his long strides.

"Where are we going?" She puffed.

Zero didn't even bother to look at her. "You'll find out once we get there."

"Look, you're obviously trying very hard with this whole 'cool guy' act," Riley put air quotes round the word. "But can you please tell me, then I can decide if it's worth going to."

Zero rolled his eyes and before she knew what was happening he had grabbed the back of her shirt and shoved her into a dark room to their left. Riley shrieked and tried to run but as she turned she came face to face with Stryker. Immediately a sheepish grin spread across her face and she sat down in the chair that had conveniently appeared behind her. Stryker in turn sat down opposite her and rested is hands on the table that separated them. Zero was stood beside the door and had given himself the job of glaring at Riley.

"So…Riley," Stryker started.

"Yes, Guvnor?" Riley interrupted, grinning.

The corner of Stryker's mouth twitched upwards. "Yes…I assume you know what this is about?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Don't have a clue." Riley answered cheerily.

Stryker sighed. "I know the basics of your powers, but we need a full demonstration." He had obviously learnt that getting to things quickly was a must with this girl.

Riley observed him coolly. Her gaze shifted to Zero and narrowed slightly. "Does he have to be here?" She asked, sound surprisingly sane.

"I'm afraid so. Safety reasons."

Riley sighed. She bit her lip, twiddled her thumbs, made an odd clicking noise with her tongue and then, quite suddenly she grinned rather madly. Stryker was rather worried by this and glanced across at Zero who placed a hand on his gun. Riley wasn't paying attention though. She had closed her eyes and a look of total concentration was upon her face. Suddenly white fur started sprouting across her body and her nose and limbs lengthened. Within seconds, standing where the girl had once sat, was a full grown, seemingly grinning; white tiger.

Stryker smirked and leaned back in his seat. "Truly fascinating." He whispered.

The tiger didn't respond, instead it slammed down onto its haunches and curled its tail around. It kept grinning though, revealing large shining fangs. In fact, it looked like an overgrown Cheshire cat that had had an accident with a can of paint.

"That's fine, Riley, you can change back now and Zero will take you to your room." Stryker smiled and nodded.

But Riley didn't change back. Stryker frowned. She got to her paws and her smile dropped. It was replaced with an eerie look in which her eyes flashed and she growled. She took one step forward, towards Stryker, and Zero was there in a flash. He glared down at her, a gun pointed right at her head. The tiger tilted her head at him and he clenched his jaw. All of a sudden she was transforming and was soon back to her human self, smiles and all.

"Riley, what was that?" Stryker snapped.

"Ah, sorry Guvnor, my powers sometimes…lose control a bit."

"Hmm…Yes, well, you can ask one of the boys where you will be sleeping. You may leave now, Riley." Stryker managed a small smile.

The two men watched as Riley practically threw herself out of the room and skipped down the hallway.

"She may be trouble," Stryker said. "Keep an eye on her."

Zero nodded. "Yes, sir."

-

-

Riley's nose wrinkled, as it often did when she was disgusted or confused. This time it was the former, and in very large doses. The room was strewn with crisp packets and dirty plates. The bed was unmade and the curtains were closed tightly. There was a smashed television in one corner and another door. She guessed this was the bathroom, or rather, she hoped.

"And you expect me to live in this?" She asked, turning to look at James accusingly.

"Hey, you don't like it you can sleep outside. Didn't you sleep in a forest for two years anyway?"

"Yes, but that's not the point…"

"Then you should feel right at home." He winked at her before sauntering out of the germ home and disappearing down the hall.

Riley picked her way over to the bed and gingerly sat on the edge. She grimaced at the grimy walls and sighed heavily. The door suddenly burst open and Wade walked in, grinning like a lunatic.

"Hey, roomie!"


	3. Cat Biscuits He Says

**AN: Rawr. I am so, so sorry for the wait. I've been rather busy with coursework and things, so pleash forgive me =3 and I'll forgive you for not reviewing XD I'm only joking, me lovelys. I don't mind really. Anywho, don't be expecting anything exciting. It's a pretty crappy chapter but I felt I owed you all something. So here it is; Enjoy.**

**Oh yush, I own it. I have Wade and Victor and all of 'em locked up in my wardrobe. Aren't I lucky? =3**

* * *

Riley stared up at the ceiling. Her eyelids slowly drooped downwards but there was suddenly a loud snort and they shot back up. She groaned and grabbed the pillow from underneath her head. Scowling in Wade's general direction she placed the pillow over her face and screamed into it. There was another snort and Riley looked up hopefully, but he was still asleep, she was still awake and he was still snoring like a chainsaw.

Being the kind gentleman he was Wade had made Riley sleep on the floor. But not being completely heartless, he had given her a pillow and a sheet. What he didn't tell her though, was that he snored like a drunken man. It had started at twelve o'clock, when he had dropped to the bed and was asleep in five seconds flat. It was now half past four and Riley could see the early morning light seeping in through the curtains. A third snort and something in Riley snapped.

She leapt up onto the bed, straddled Wade's chest and started to beat him with a pillow. He woke almost instantly.

"Wha…what's going on?!" He grumbled, feebly trying to push the small girl off of him.

"Will. You. Shut. Up!" Each word was accompanied with a smack to the head with the pillow.

"I didn't say anything!" Wade protested.

"No! You spoke through your nose!" Riley shrieked in frustration and, exhausted, she dropped the pillow and slumped onto the empty side of the bed. Wade watched curiously as she curled up, not unlike a cat, and rested her head on his arm. She sighed blissfully and closed her eyes, slowly drifting into the dream world. Wade raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Just…just shut up," Riley waved her arm blindly, unconsciously smacking him on the side of his face. "And go to sleep."

-

She awoke to an empty bed, not that she was disappointed. Wade had graciously opened the curtains and the light streamed in, blinding her momentarily as she blinked blearily. With a groan she sat up and yawned, looking wearily around the room. Wade was nowhere to be seen and unfortunately he had not a clock in sight. Yawning almost none stop she climbed out of the bed, tripped over a discarded shoe and made her way to the door.

The corridor outside was empty. Not a person in sight. Not even one damned cleaning lady. Her ears twitched as they picked up the dull muffled sound of arguing and the clinking of cutlery against plates. She sighed and shivering against the unnatural coldness of the place, slowly made her down the hall. Luckily, she was still dressed reasonably and no one had dressed her up in a maid's outfit in the middle of the night.

It didn't take her long to get to the kitchen, where everyone seemed to be currently residing. She placed her palm flat on the door and slowly pushed it open. Just like everywhere else in the building, it looked like a bomb had hit it. A big grey evil bomb. Pots and pans were slowly congealing in the sink full of lukewarm water. Wade was sat on the greasy worktop, munching happily on what looked like stale bread. Fred, John and Zero were sat round the large table playing a card game, Bradley was switching the microwave on and off and Victor seemed to be asleep in an armchair, not that Riley was about to go and check.

Wade spotted her first, standing timidly in the doorway. "Hey, Stripes!" He shouted. This was obviously her new nickname. The rest of the motley crew looked up at her, grunted their greetings and returned to what they were doing.

"Hello, Wade." Riley replied, grimacing as he stuffed the rest of the bread in his mouth. The man grinned, revealing a mouthful of mushed bread and jumped down off of the counter.

"You hungry? 'Cos we got you some food." He asked. Riley, momentarily surprised that he was caring for her well being, didn't notice the cheeky grin that was spreading over his face. "We didn't know what type you liked." From behind his back he brought out a box of what looked like, _Whiska's_ cat food.

Riley glared up at him. "Oh haha, very funny Wade. Why don't you go and kill another innocent civilian?"

She pushed past him, purposely slamming her shoulder into his, well, she couldn't quite reach that far, so she settled for his chest instead. Wade apparently wasn't affected by her hostile behaviour and bounded after the girl. She had flopped down onto a chair at the table and was watching the ongoing card game with bored interest.

"Come on, trust try one." Wade begged, waving the box of biscuits eagerly in her face.

"I'm not eating your stupid cat food." Riley snapped. "Do I look like a cat?"

Zero snorted at this and shook his head in amusement.

"C'mon, Stripes." Wade smirked. "I bet they fed it to you all day at the mental hospital."

That was the last straw for Riley. No one knew her past, and she preferred to keep it that way. With a shriek to rival that of a banshee's, she leapt at Wade. He jumped back with a yell but she landed on his chest, sending them both to the floor. Blinded by anger she started to hit him across his face, his chest, anywhere she could find. Sometime within this scuffle for dominance, the box of cat food burst and they small fish shaped things scattered everywhere. One somehow found its way into Wade's hand and grinning triumphantly he grabbed Riley's chin with on hand and shoved the biscuit between her lips and down into her mouth.

"There, it's not so bad is it?" He laughed. Riley's face was a mixture of disgust and fury and she rolled away from the man, spitting the disgusting out of her mouth. She coughed, her shoulders heaving as the taste just about gagged her.

"I hate…you." She whispered. "So much."

"Not what you were saying last night." Wade grinned and winked suggestively at her. Immediately these words brought the attention of the rest of the men, who had previously been ignoring the loud fight on the floor, onto them and they all stared, hoping for more details.

"I never,-" Riley stared but he interrupted her.

"You practically jumped on me." He said in a mild tone.

Riley's face darkened and she growled. She went to leap on him for a second time but someone suddenly grabbed the back of her top and hauled her to her feet. She was turned round, mid air, coming face to face with James, who looked considerably healthier than earlier.

"James!" She said cheerily, her mood swings were slightly scary. She stuck out her hand. "My name's Riley, we met earlier, you know; you were throwing your guts up and I was getting thrown about the plane like a monkey in a jungle."

"I remember." James growled.

Riley grinned. "Good to know!"

The man narrowed his eyes and shifted the cigar to the other side of his mouth. "Stryker wants to see you, and Wade, and Victor."

Riley's ears flattened against her head at the mention of Victor and her ice blue eyes glanced across at him. He was awake now and staring coolly at them. Her tail automatically wrapped around her waist in a defensive manner.

"Right now?" She croaked.

"Right now." James confirmed, gently placing her back on her own two feet.

Wade jumped to his feet and smirked down at her. "Well you better get moving then, Stripes. Or would you like me to carry you?"

Riley narrowed her eyes at him. She brushed past him, completely ignoring him as he attempted to grab her elbow, and disappeared down the corridor. Victor slowly followed at his own pace. He could hear Wade shouting things as the two burst into a run ahead of him. He rolled his eyes. He just hoped Stryker wasn't expecting them to go on a mission together.

-

The three stood in front of Stryker who was wearing that thin lipped smile he always had on. Riley on the other hand was grinning like a maniac that had just been told he was allowed permanent marker pens.

Stryker coughed before looking up at each of them in turn. "I need you to find someone for me." He said mildly.

"You mean a mission!" Riley had to restrain from clapping her hands together in excitement.

"Yes, Riley, a mission." He fixed her with a warning glare. "Can I trust you won't run off?"

For a second her face fell but she righted it quickly, hoping no one had noticed. "Of course, Guvnor." She smiled.

"Good. You will be leaving tomorrow morning."

This time her face did fall. "Can I change rooms, please?" She begged desperately.

Stryker smirked. "No. Now leave."

Riley's jaw clenched and she stormed out of the office. Wade smirked down at her. "Looks like we're gonna' be buking together then." He winked down at her.

"Don't bet on it." Riley muttered and ran off to find Fred and beg him for a chainsaw.


	4. Don't Bait the Cat

**AN: Eeesh, I am so sorry for the wait, but I kinda lost the inspo for this and I was failing badly. And I'm sorry if it shows in this stupidly short chappie, but it was all I could do at the moment. I've been rather busy and such (: So's I hope ya'll like it anyways. Enjoy ^^**

Clutching a blanket and pillow to her chest, Riley quietly tiptoed down the empty corridor. She had narrowly escaped her fate of sleeping in Wade's room, stolen his bedcovers and was now looking for a substitute place to crash for the night. She hadn't had much luck, what with Victor slamming the door in her face (she had been surprised he had even answered it), Zero had just stared at her until she quietly slunk away and John was already asleep. Not one to admit defeat she had slowly ventured on until she found herself standing outside James's room. Now she hadn't made eye contact with the unsociable man since the plane accident and if she was to be truthful she was slightly scared of him, but bravely she raised her hand and rapped on the door with the back of knuckles. Immediately she regretted it, she could hear his slow footsteps as he walked up to the door and with every step he took she took one backwards and when the door finally swung open she was pressed against the far wall looking like a rabbit caught in headlights.

'Riley?' He said, one eyebrow raised. The girl stared at him, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. She looked slightly odder than usual, her raven hair loosely braided into a long plait and slung over her shoulder and baggy blue pyjamas that were actually Wade's although he had assured her he never wore them.

'Uh, hey James.' She said weakly, waving her free hand in the air like an idiot. The man looked utterly confused. He coughed, glanced her up and down before raising his other eyebrow.

'You need something?' He eventually got round to saying and by this time Riley had managed to pull herself together and was now attempting to barge past him and into the room.

'Yes,' she muttered, pushing fruitlessly against his stomach while simultaneously trying to duck underneath his arm. 'I need to borrow...your bed.'

In his surprise at this odd request James dropped his arm from the door, mistakenly allowing the small girl into his room, who then proceeded to jump onto his bed and start to lay out her covers.

James turned to look at her, still holding the door open as he stared with a mixture of confusion and annoyance at the young girl. 'I'm not sure-,'

'Oh, don't worry,' Riley interrupted cheerfully. 'I don't snore. Not like some people.' Her eyes darkened and her ears flattened instinctively.

'It's not that, its…'

But once again the man was stopped from finishing his sentence when Riley jumped down from the bed, in front of him in seconds. Eyes wide, she stared up at him innocently. 'Please don't kick me out, James.' She whispered. 'I've got nowhere else to go.'

The man observed her carefully before he sighed, his shoulders sagging in defeat. 'Fine, you can stay.' He muttered, closing the door with a firm slam.

The black haired girl squealed in delight, bounding back to the bed and jumping onto it in one giant leap of faith. She landed face down, burying her head in the covers. Her small body was spread as far as it could go across the double bed and James stood there uncertainly, for the first time he felt awkward in his own room. A round blue eye peaked up at him from underneath the pillow.

'Want me to move over?' She asked, her voice muffled by the duvet.

'No, no, its fine. You just,' he sighed again, slumping down on the sofa by the window. 'Make yourself comfortable.'

-

James groaned, shifting in his uncomfortable position on the bed. Through his closed eyelids he could see the pale blue light creeping in through the gap in the curtains. It was early in the morning, he could tell that and all he wanted to do was fall back to sleep. But something was wrong, he could feel someone close. Very close. His nose twitched and he frowned before opening his eyes. At first the focus was bleary, but soon enough the blurry shapes molded into solid forms and he nearly cried out in shock at what he was met with.

Two bright blue eyes were staring into his own. Riley was so close he could feel her breath on his skin. She was perched on the armrest of the sofa, her long slim tail stretched out, helping her balance. As soon as she noticed he was awake her face broke into a grin.

'Riley?!' He exclaimed, sitting up with a jolt, causing the girl to go flying down onto the floor as his arm caught her in her chest. She wasn't fazed though, and jumped to her feet, almost running around the room in excitement.

'Ahah!' She shouted. 'I just used my mind powers to drag you from your sleep.' She spun round, pointing an accusing finger at him. 'You are most probably still under my command.' She bounded over to him, narrowing her eyes and staring into his face. 'Sleep, go back to sleeeep.' She said slowly.

James rolled his eyes and stood up, pushing her out the way as he made his way to the bathroom. He ignored her cries of exasperation and slammed the bathroom door in her face, locking it before she could run in after him. He shook his head as he heard his bedroom door open and close before she sprinted off down the corridor, probably to go wake up Wade with her new found, 'powers.'

-

Riley pressed herself back against the wall, digging her heels into the ground as Wade attempted to drag her towards the jet that rested at the other end of the large tarmac area. She growled, hissing and spitting at the man but he wouldn't give up, taking her arm in a death grip and managing to pull her away from the wall. He grunted when her foot connected with his shin but hung onto her skinny arm all the same.

'Riley, you have to get on the plane.' He ordered through clenched teeth.

'I am not going on it!' The girl shrieked, thrashing wildly. 'Has it been cleaned, disinfected? I think not.'

Wade sighed in frustration, flashing her the first glare she had ever received from him. 'Do you want me to get Victor?' He spoke as if talking to a child.

'I'm not afraid of him.' Riley snorted, sticking her nose up in the air and turning away from him. Wade shrugged, he started forward but the man in question appeared from around the corner, glaring at the pair.

'What's taking so long?' He snarled, looking down at Riley who had visibly paled.

'She won't get on the plane.' Wade explained, smirking. Victor raised an eyebrow, looking at Wade before glancing down in question at the Riley.

She coughed, shifting nervously from foot to foot. 'I, uh, I didn't want – well, maybe, but he threw up and, erm…' She looked between the two, her stammering coming to a halt. 'Okay, okay, I'm going.' She muttered, stomping past Wade and across to the jet, her tail flicking from side to side in annoyance.

They were going on the mission Stryker had set them. Almost as soon as Riley had left James's room, Wade had been on her, demanding to know what they had been doing. Riley had only smiled mysteriously and walked away, where she had come across Stryker who had ordered her to get on the plane. Apparently some man owed Stryker money, Riley hadn't asked questions, Zero's gun had made sure of that.

She slumped down in the seat, staring in disgust at the floor. It was spotless, but she couldn't help picture the vomit that was once there. She looked away, glancing up to see Wade sitting across from her, smirking as he sharpened his sword. Victor sat at the other end, looking like he was asleep but for all Riley knew he was preparing to pounce on her and tear her eyeballs out. She shuddered at the thought, edging closer to the door. The plane jerked and Riley was nearly flung straight into Victor as it took off, but she managed to brace herself this time and clung to the seat. The plane leveled out and they sat in an awkward silence.

_Swish._

Riley's left ear twitched.

_Swish._

She tilted her head to one side, look down at Wade's sword before glancing up at him.

_Swish._

She frowned, watching as he slowly sharpened his blade.

_Swish. Swish._

'Stop it.' She finally snapped, glaring at him with darkened blue eyes.

Wade smiled. 'No.' He said shortly before continuing on.

'I'll bite you.'

'Yeah, right.'

'I will. This is your last warning.'

'Good luck.'

Riley launched herself across the plane, her hands grabbing onto Wade's arm, and without a moments thought, she clamped her jaw around his arm, digging her teeth in.

'What the fuck!?' He shouted, almost jumping out of his seat. He stared down at where Riley had latched her teeth onto his arm in disbelief. 'She bit me!' He exclaimed, staring at Victor.

The man shrugged. 'She did warn you.' He commented, not opening his eyes.


	5. Cats Are Like Ninjas Without Balaclavas

**AN: I know, I know, another failed chapter, but ah well. I won't mention the fact I'm in the middle of moving house, or I have a sleeping disorder, for my excuses. That would be silly. ;) Anywhoo, many thanks to Captain Deadpool for her helpful advise and putting up with my many questions and total spammage of her inbox. Thanks ;D I hope you like it anyways, don't worry, as soon as I sort myself out the chappies shall be longer and more awesomer (hopefully) **

**Please don't shoot me :)**

Riley peered over the hedge, her eyes narrowed as she scanned the large garden beyond it. Behind her Wade shook his head in exasperation and when Victor appeared he rolled his eyes in an attempt to hide his apparent shock. The reason for the men's disbelief was the fact that Riley had somehow acquired a balaclava and for the past five minutes had been pretending she was a ninja. If things couldn't get any worse for the men she had begun to hum the Mission Impossible theme tune under her breath.

'What the hell is she doing?' Victor snarled under his breath.

Wade shrugged. 'She won't let me tell her what to do. I think she's crazy.'

'No shit.'

'You do know my ninja powers allow me to hear you from incredible distances.' She called from the hedge.

Wade tilted his head. 'Riley…we're standing right next you.'

'Hush, fool.' The girl turned back to face them, her eyes wide underneath the balaclava. She stared at them and Wade shifted uncomfortably, suddenly she blinked and he flinched. 'Now, I have come to the conclusion that he is in the house.'

'Well aren't we the clever one?' Victor remarked sarcastically.

Riley didn't answer; instead she turned on her heel, flicked her tail and in one jump, leapt over the hedge and into the garden. She straightened up and smirked back at Wade triumphantly.

'Watch this.' She grinned and before he had a chance to ask her what she was up to, she was off sprinting across the lawn like her life depended on it.

'Oh, shit.' Wade muttered before setting off after her.

Riley didn't have a clue what she was doing, she didn't even know if this was the right house but all she knew was she was going to get away from those idiots if it was the last thing she did. Which it probably would be. She could hear Wade's heavy footsteps behind her, getting louder with each step he took. She only hoped it was Wade and not Victor, who would probably tear her legs off. She shuddered at the thought of no legs. She would be…legless. Suddenly an idea struck her and without a moments thought, she dropped to the ground, curling into a little ball. Just as she had expected, Wade's foot hit her back and he went flying head over heels over the top of her.

'Haha!' Riley shrieked, jumping to her feet and pointing at him. 'You have been outsmarted by a ninja!' She grinned and ran over to his groaning form. 'How do you feel?' She asked sweetly before suddenly flopping down and sitting on him. 'You feel quite comfy.' At this she dissolved into a fit of giggles, and it was in this position that Victor found them in.

He stared down at Wade, shaking his head. The man looked up at him, grinning. 'I have an idea.'

-

'You can't do this!' Riley screamed, thrashing wildly against her bonds.

Wade smirked, patting her roughly on the head. 'We just did.'

'I'm going to kill you when I get free,' she snarled. 'I'm going to jump on you, take your head, and bite your nose off.' She smirked evilly.

'I'll look forward to it.' Wade whispered before he walked away after Victor.

Riley looked around desperately. They had tied her to a tree and left her there, in the middle of a forest. Sure, she liked trees, trees were fun, but it was a tiny bit degrading to find oneself tied to the trunk of a particularly large oak. They had also taken her balaclava, so she couldn't even pretend to be a ninja anymore; that in itself was cruelty on a high level. She knew it would take them at least an hour to find the man and maybe they would stop along the way to murder innocent pigeons who were just minding their own business, which would take another half an hour. Riley sighed, an hour and a half of being tied to a tree.

'Great.' She said dryly.

Suddenly a flash of brown caught her eye and Riley frowned, looking down to see a large squirrel staring up at her. It was clutching a nut in its two tiny paws and Riley could practically hear the little guy's heart thumping against his chest. She smiled in an attempt to comfort the squirrel, so it didn't have a heart attack and she wouldn't be a murderer.

'Hello, squirrel,' she began, but before she could finish the squirrel gave a huge squeak and fell over. It lay there, clearly dead. Riley stared at it in horror. 'Oops.' She said quietly. She looked around nervously, it couldn't have been her fault, squirrels didn't just randomly drop dead, no, it must have been ill…or on the brink of death, or injured! Yes, she thought, it was definitely injured. Or maybe it had just fainted, realising it was in her presence?

Flooded with guilt, (it was so hard being amazing) Riley attempted to revive the squirrel. 'Hey, erm, you, on the ground. Wake up, or a hawk will come and eat you.'

Its tail twitched.

Riley grinned. 'Yeah, that's right, just move those little legs of yours and get up.' She added encouragingly.

Whether the squirrel was just having last minute spasms or whether it was actually trying to reincarnate itself, it didn't matter, because right at that moment a huge hawk swooped down from the sky, its sharp taloned feet scooping the squirrel up. It glared at Riley, as if debating whether to take her as well, but in seconds it was back in the sky, flying away.

Riley stared, deadpanned, at where the little creature once lay. 'Well,' she said finally. 'That sucks.'

All of a sudden a thought struck her and she realized she was just like the squirrel, helpless and stuck in a world she didn't belong. Although, the squirrel did belong in the woods, but that didn't matter. What did matter was that Riley was suddenly struck with a wave of emotions and they crashed over her again and again until, out of the blue, she decided she must get away. She didn't want to end up like the squirrel, because she knew soon enough, Stryker wouldn't need her and her jokes and her annoyingness. All her life people had given up on her, kicked her out in the dark, but not anymore. This was the day Riley Hyde would stand up for herself!

If only she wasn't tied to the damned tree.

When Wade and Victor finally got back Riley had a wild look in her eyes and she was practically frothing at the mouth. Wade watched her suspiciously as he untied her, quickly grabbing onto her arm once she was free. Victor also didn't look too sure about her current state; after all, she hadn't said one word since they had got back.

'Stripes is in a mood.' Wade sang, smirking down at her.

'I am not,' Riley snapped, and then suddenly she looked up, pointing at the tree. 'Oh, look, it's a multi coloured polka dot bird.' She exclaimed.

'No its not.' Victor suddenly snarled, flashing his fangs at her. 'And that idiot might fall for your stupid distractions but I'm not going to.' Without another word, the man tugged her out of Wade's grip and started to drag her away. It took Riley a few minutes of struggling to realize she wasn't going to escape his death grip and so she went limp.

'I guess I'll just have to allow myself to be dragged away, then.' She sighed dramatically, placing the back of her hand to her forehead and letting her feet drag along the ground. 'Maybe I will die during my possibly fatal kidnap from someone so strong and tall and,' she paused, peaking up at him from behind her hand. 'Muscly.'

-

Riley sat slumped in an armchair, glaring at anyone who dared make eye contact with her. She had been silent the whole way back and if anyone had the ability to read her mind they would have seen she was mulling over an escape plan. With a few crazed thoughts and marshmallows on the side. Her made was a disarray of windows, doors and ropes. She went over every possible idea at least three times, covering all the holes that were left open. If there was even the slightest chance she could be caught, then the idea was discarded as quickly as a carton of rotten milk.

A cough alerted her from her puzzled mind and she glanced up, catching the eye James who had settled himself opposite her, a bottle of beer in one hand. Since spending a night in the man's room, Riley had found he was probably the kindest man there. Plus he didn't snore. But Riley felt she could trust him, although he had his moody moments he was always there for a quick chat, even if his advice wasn't the best, he listened.

'Somethin' troubling you, kid?' He asked, raising a brow.

Riley shrugged half heartedly, casting her gaze downwards. 'Just trying to devise a cunning plan.' She answered.

James snorted. 'Good luck with that.' He nodded, raising his bottle to her before taking a swig. He wasn't worried about the trouble she could cause, or get into, she could take care of herself, as she was slowly proving.

'Thank you.' She said politely, suddenly grinning like a maniac. 'You know what I need?' She said brightly.

'Hm?'

'Peanut butter.'

With that, Riley jumped up and raced out of the room, leaving James to his confusion and his beer. She raced down the corridors, almost considering changing forms just to get to the fridge quicker. She was in the process of sorting through the pro's and con's of this when she suddenly ran into a wall. Now, last time she looked there wasn't usually a wall in this part of the corridor, so naturally looked up just to see if it was a tree.

It wasn't.

'Where are you going in such a hurry?' The man she figured was Zero (or man-with-all-the-guns) asked.

'The fridge,' Riley said quickly. 'In the kitchen, down here, please…move?' She smiled hopefully. Zero observed her closely, twirling his gun round his finger.

'No.' He finally answered shortly.

'What do you mean, 'no'?' Riley snapped, attempting to side step round him, but he was there, in the way, again.

'No, means no.' He said slowly.

'Well, what am I allowed to do then, Mr Know It All?'

'You can help me.'

'Doing what?'

'You'll see.'

And that was how Riley found herself being dragged away from the peanut butter by a man with a lot of guns and apparently no brain.


	6. Cat Saves Dog

**AN: Blergh. Yepp. That's how I feel tonight. Just blergh. Ah well. I hope you like it, I practically forced it out of my cold, dead (not really, but they are cold) fingers, just for you smurfs. Don't kill me, I need a wee.**

**Many apologies to Captain Deadpool who isn't actually a 'she'. **

**Go figure. **

**Oh, I almost forgot. This chapter is dedicated to Kat. Who deserves a better chapter to be dedicated to, but ya know, I like messing with her mind. :)**

Out of all the things Zero could have done with her, Riley would never have guessed this. He had taken her to a large cold gym like room, where there were various things set up which Riley guessed were used to for people who felt the need to have more muscles than needed. But Zero wasn't interested in getting more muscular, nor was he interested in getting_ Riley_ more muscular. No, what Zero had claimed he needed to work on was his aim. Whether what he said was the truth or he was just messing with her, Riley didn't know, she had never seen him fight. Judging by all the guns strapped to various body parts and the way he 'narrowly missed' vital limbs on her body, Riley could have guessed he didn't need the practice. But she couldn't exactly ask him to let her go.

'Zero,' she gasped, her hands resting on her knees. 'Please, stop shooting at me.'

'No,' he smirked before creating a hole in the wall just beside her head. Had she moved another inch he would be seeing her brains spilling out of a hole in her forehead.

Riley yelped and jumped to one side, only to jump back to dodge yet another bullet. It looked like she was doing a rather complicated dance. Zero paused in his assault to casually reload his gun, giving Riley time to run around like a headless chicken as she desperately looked for a hiding place. It seemed Zero was enjoying her obvious panic and was reloading incredibly slowly, probably just to build up the tension before he would 'miss' shooting her eye out. Finding no way out of the situation, Riley turned and glared at him, her hands resting threateningly on her hips.

'Zero!' She shouted. 'If you don't stop now, I shall come over there and bite your head off.'

Zero scoffed. 'I don't think you're in any position to be telling me what to do.' He pointed out before raising the gun.

'But what if you miss, or it bounces off the wall and hits me and I'll die.' Riley whined, staring at him with wide, pleading eyes.

Zero rolled his eyes but before he could point out all the possible reasons he wouldn't miss the door flew open and Fred stood there in all his glory, chewing on some gum. 'Uh, Zero, Stryker wants to see you.' He said, looking possibly slightly less dimwitted than usual.

A shriek of happiness escaped Riley's lips and she leapt at Fred, locking her arms around his neck and giving him a rather constricting hug. Fred didn't quite know what to do about this girl who possibly had a greater hold on him than a snake. He looked at Zero for answers but the man just shrugged, smirking, and walked out. Fred jumped as an odd sound hit his ear but it was only Riley blowing a raspberry at Zero as he walked away.

'You saved my life Fred!' The small girl finally shouted. 'I must find a way to repay you! Don't worry, I'll be back in a jiffy.' And with that she was gone, out the door and running full pelt for anything that might interest Fred at this current moment in time.

-

A couple of peaceful hours later, Riley returned from her travels, unfortunately for the boys. No one had noticed her yet, which she was thankful for because, straining on the end of a frayed piece of string, was a dog. It was covered in mud and very scruffy looking, but it was a dog all the same and it was leaving muddy footprints along the floor, which was ruining Riley's plan to get it in unnoticed altogether. It whined, wagging its tail happily. Riley gave a muffled giggle, kicking James's door open and shoving the dog inside. Luckily, James was nowhere to be seen, so it didn't bother Riley when the dog jumped straight onto the bed, covering the sheets in mud. She sat down on the floor with a thick black felt tip and a piece of paper, frowning in concentration.

'Dear Fred,' she began before quickly scribbling it out.

Dear Fredders.

'No, no, that's not right.'

To Federick.

**Dear Freddersons**

**Dearest Freddy.**

Finally she settled on the first one and continued with her letter.

_Dear Fred._

_Thank you for saving my life from the evil man with the guns, otherwise known as Zero. I would have most probably died without you and your muscles. As a reward I give you this dog, you can name him yourself, although I do suggest Pudding. He seems to like it when I say that._

_Love Riley._

Satisfied with it, Riley folded it up neatly and wrote FRED on it in big letters. She didn't hesitate to write in extreme detail what would happen if anyone other than Fred opened the letter. With a smile, she jumped to her feet, earning a bark of delight from Pudding who bounded up to her and tried to lick her face. With the letter clutched tightly in one hand, Riley yanked open the door and jumped out into the hallway. Unfortunately for her Pudding seemed to get the wrong idea and shot off down the corridor, barking like a lunatic. Riley stared after him for a few seconds, looked around and releasing a high-pitched scream, sprinted after the unruly dog. They raced down countless corridors, Pudding still barking joyfully while Riley desperately tried to rugby tackle him to the ground. Her annoyed shouts weren't helping though, the dog deciding it was all a game and in her apparent 'encouragement', increased his speed, flying straight into the kitchen and under the table. Riley swore loudly before running in after him.

-

James yawned as he walked into the kitchen. He was heading for the fridge, where he knew resided the last can of beer, if Wade hadn't gotten there first. But the tail that was sticking out from under the kitchen table made him stop in his tracks. He sighed; he knew that stripy tail anywhere.

'Riley?' He called.

'Yes?' A cheerful voice came from under the table.

'What the hell are you doing under there?'

'I-I, erm, I'm getting my…earring.'

'You don't have your ears pierced.'

There was an odd whine before a frantic shushing sound and a giggle. James frowned and he took a step forward, bending over to lift the tablecloth up when suddenly she appeared, grinning madly.

'Do you need something, James?' She asked sweetly.

James eyed her warily. 'What's under the table?' He asked slowly.

Riley blinked. 'Psssh, nothing.' She waved her hand, suppressing a giggle as Pudding's wet nose pushed against her leg. She coughed, frowning, and kicked him back. 'So, ya' know, seeing as there is absolutely nothing underneath that table, why don't you just go to your room, relax, ignore the mud stains on the bed, and go back to sleep.'

'Mud stains?' James's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

'Did I just say mud?' Riley chuckled nervously. 'I meant…wood. Yes..I've been building a house, for me…myself, and I got some wood on your bed. Mind out for the chainsaw!' With that she pushed him out the door and slammed it in his bewildered face. Sighing in relief, Riley glared at Pudding who had emerged from the table and was slobbering all over a shoe, which she suspected belonged to Victor. _That_ wasn't going to go down too well.

'You're more trouble than I anticipated.' Riley stated, looking down at the dog, who wagged his tail in return. 'C'mon.' She muttered.

Very slowly and as quietly as possible, Riley opened the kitchen door, sticking her head out and looking from side to side. The corridor was clear, so without further ado, Riley legged it, Pudding following close behind. She was making swiftly for Fred's room, which was unfortunately situated close to Victor's, but that didn't matter. She ordered Pudding to sit, who obeyed, sitting by her leg and panting happily. With a swish of her tail, she knocked loudly on the door, waited two seconds before pounding on it with both hands. It flew open, revealing a disheveled looking Fred, his hair sticking up in odd places and dressed only in a pair of boxers.

'Riley?' He said slowly, frowning.

'Hello!' Riley said perkily. 'I brought your present,' she gestured to the dog.

'Uh,' Fred scratched his head. 'Where'd you…wait, why…what?'

'Here's a note.' Riley shoved the note at him, still keeping her grin as his eyes scanned over it before looking down at Pudding.

'Eer, thanks, Riley,' he blinked. 'But don't you think you should keep it? I mean, what can I do with a dog. I can't eat it.'

Riley gasped. 'You most certainly cannot eat him!' She protested. Suddenly Pudding whined and Riley wouldn't of blamed him, seeing as Fred had just mentioned eating him, but it seemed it wasn't because of the hungry man that the dog was nervous, no, it was because Victor was stood behind them, looking very menacing indeed.

'What is this?' He growled, glaring at Pudding who decided if he couldn't see Victor then Victor couldn't see him, and so, hid his head in his paws.

'This is Fred's dog.' Riley answered.

'No its not.' Fred said quickly.

'Is.'

'Isn't.

'Is!'

'Isn't!'

Victor held up his hand, causing the two to halt in the midst of their argument and look at him. 'I don't care who's it is. I'm going to kill it.'

Riley gaped. 'You can't kill him!'

'Why not?'

'Because…because he's mine! I found him, now stay away!' She snapped. 'You're just jealous.'

'You just said he was Fred's.' Victor pointed out bluntly.

Riley blinked and glanced sideways. 'No I didn't.' She muttered, crossing her arms over her chest.

Victor sighed. 'Yes, you did. Now move, or I'll kill you first.'

'No you won't.' Riley stated, smirking.

'Oh,' he raised an eyebrow. 'And why's that?'

'Because…I'm going to run away from you…right…now.'

Before Victor could even blink, Riley had shot off down the corridor, screaming like a lunatic and Pudding close behind her, also barking. This sudden interruption of the early morning quietness caused quite a few doors to open and bleary faces to appear.

'What's wrong with her?' Wade muttered.

'She's got a dog and I said I was going to kill it.' Victor said flatly.

'Should we warn Stryker?' John questioned.

'Nah, let her have it while it lasts.'

They fell silent and all that could be heard was the distant sound of Riley's screams and Pudding's joyful barking.


	7. Cat on a Hot Wire Fence

**AN: OhMy. I am so, so, soooo sorry that this took me like, four weeks to do. But I do have quite a good excuse ;D I moved house. Yes. And we didn't have the tinternet for ages and we finally got it out yesterday, so forgive me, my minions :) It took me ages to get this chapter right and I still don't think it is but ya' know, I didn't wanna leave ya'll for too long. But enough of meee, get reading fools. ^^**

* * *

James was laid on his bed, contemplating the thought of another night in the presence of Riley and the mongrel she had happened to pick up. He didn't want to have a dog in his room, heck, he didn't want to have a crazy cat girl in his room but look what had happened. He shook his head, frowning deeply. Maybe she wouldn't want to sleep in his room tonight; after all, there were plenty of other people in the building to annoy. Plus she was in the process of bugging Stryker to let her have her own room; he hadn't relented yet but maybe…just maybe. His hopes were shattered when she walked into the room, the dog trotting in after her.

'That brother of yours, is evil,' she spat. 'Evil, I tell you.' She flopped down onto the bed beside James, the dog followed, leaping onto James and panting in his face.

'Thanks for the info,' he said dryly, standing up and running a hand through his hair.

Riley tilted her head to one side. 'What's up with you?' She asked, rolling over onto her stomach and staring up at him.

'Nothing,' James answered, frowning. He clenched his jaw and made for the door. 'You can sleep in the bed, just make sure the, uh, dog doesn't slobber everywhere.' He nodded firmly and left. Riley blinked but shrugged anyway and threw her arms around Pudding, easily falling into a deep sleep.

-

She woke alone, the warmth where Pudding had once lain was gone and all that was left of him were a few black and white dog hairs. The scream Riley unleashed could've killed someone, had they had been in the vicinity at the time. She raced from the room, still dressed in her sheep patterned pyjamas, with one person on her mind. Of course it would have been him that had taken Pudding, after all, the dog had practically torn apart the man's shoe. She marched into the kitchen where Wade was slumped across the table, a bottle of beer held loosely in his hand.

'Where is he?' She demanded, her eyes narrow and glaring.

'Where's who?' Wade groaned and sat up.

'Victor.' Riley hissed back. Wade raised a hand and pointed into the lounge, obviously speaking was beyond him at this time of the day.

Riley spun on her heel and walked into the lounge where she found Victor sat comfortably on a sofa, his booted feet up on the coffee table. He was reading the paper but Riley didn't miss the wide smirk that graced his lips. She came to a stop in front of him, her hands resting on her hips and one eyebrow raised. 'I know you've got him, so give him back or I'll bite you really hard.' She snapped.

'I can give him back to you if you really want him,' Victor drawled, slowly folding the paper and putting it down on the table, 'but it'll be in pieces.'

Riley released another hellish scream and lunged, hurling herself across the table and straight into him. She clawed and bit wherever she could but he easily overpowered her and threw her across the room, raising himself to his full height. Riley swiftly noticed her mistake at attempting to attack this hulk of a man and she scrambled for the door, hoping to make it to Fred's room. The least she could do was find some sort of weapon, even a frying pan would be sufficient enough. But his hand clamped itself around her ankle and she was dragged backwards. He picked her up by the back of her neck and slammed her against the wall.

'Oh God, I'm going to die. At the hands of you, no less. I rather fancied dying for my country, you know? Or at the end of an epic battle, I suppose in your sleep isn't that bad, but-,' her endless chatter was immediately cut off when Victor dropped her to the ground and walked away. She stayed there, shocked, for about a second before she grinned and jumped to her feet. 'Yeah, you…you better run!' She shouted after him. 'I was just getting started, you wanna' piece of me?' She danced about on the spot; her fists raised high in the air. Her moment of triumph was gone though, when Wade hit across the back of her head and she tripped over a discarded pizza box, falling flat on her face.

Zero chose that moment to appear and made straight for the fridge, neatly stepping over a groaning Riley.

'Why is Riley on the floor?' He asked.

'She fell over when she was asking Victor if he wanted a piece of her.' Wade answered absent-mindedly.

Zero snorted. 'Nice.' He commented.

'You're just jealous.' Riley muttered from the floor.

'Of you and Victor?'

'No, of my ninja-ness, add my mind powers to that and I am one dangerous individual.'

'Riley…you don't have any mind powers.'

She jumped to her feet with a slightly worrying expression upon her face. 'That's what you think.' She hissed and ran out of the kitchen, narrowly missing a shattered looking James.

-

That night Riley didn't appear in James's room and after two hours of waiting he finally went to sleep, sighing happily at the comfort of his own bed. There was a slight smell of strawberries on the sheets, mixed with the faint scent of a cat and a dog but he ignored this and easily fell into a deep sleep.

Outside Riley was currently pressed flat against a wall, her face painted in green and black camouflage and her clothes in similar colours. The only thing that stood out against the black of the night were the bright white of her tail and ears, these she flat out refused to disfigure. After the incident with Pudding she was determined to get out of that stupid place and away from the stupid men and she'd be damned if she was going to wait another night. It probably would have been smarter to bring shoes, a smarter person would have done this but Riley wasn't renowned for being smart, in fact, Riley wasn't renowned for anything. But she liked to think she was, it made running across hard tarmac easier. She darted across the flat expanse that lay between the building of death and the fence. The fence wouldn't be hard, she decided, it wasn't electric, Wade had smugly told her when she had threatened to throw him on it. There was no way she would be able to climb, not without shoes, so the only other way would to use her power.

'Yay for cats,' she giggled to herself and leapt, transforming smoothly in mid air. Unfortunately, she had misjudged the jump and landed inches away from the top of the fence, clinging to the wire like a cat stuck up a tree. 'Well…this sucks.' She muttered before she shrieked like a bedraggled cat. It took her a moment to realize that the fence was in fact electric and Wade had in fact lied to her. The volts of electricity coursing through her veins caused her to lose concentration and she slipped back into her human form before another ear splitting scream was released and she scrambled for the top, trying to ignore the pain shocking through her. Her fingers caught the edge of the wire and, with shaking arms; she pulled herself up before flinging herself over onto the other side.

She lay there for a while, smoke practically rising from her body. Her hair had stuck up around her head, something she thought only happened in movies. She grinned though, because she was out, she was free, she was –

'Riley?'

…in trouble.

She jumped to her feet and wobbled like a plate of jelly, almost falling straight back into the deadly wire. It was Bradley stood on the other side, someone she had only met a couple of times but he had seemed nice enough. The only thing remotely dangerous about him was the gun he held tightly in his hands. Riley blinked once, twice and smiled weakly.

'Hey, Brad,' she called, waving. 'Bradders, me' old mate.'

He frowned. 'What are you doing?'

'Just, erm, just going for a jog, outside, in the air.' Riley stammered, her grin faltering.

'At two o'clock in the morning…?'

'Early riser me!' She said and peered over his shoulder. 'Got anyone else with you? Anyone big and scary looking?'

'No, but why are you-,' he was interrupted by a cheer of triumph from Riley.

'Yes! I did it!' She grinned evilly. 'I'm leaving now, Bradley, and you can't come after me because the fence is electric.' She sang, sticking her tongue out at him. 'And if you tell anyone I am running away to join the circus I'll bite your nose off.' She announced and turned on her heel and stalked away.

'Riley!' Bradley called. 'You can't run away! Come back.'

'Yes I can!' Riley yelled. 'Because I am one dangerous individual and I can kill you with a single glance. I am a deadly ninja. So fear me!' With that being said she turned around again and stormed off.

Only to walked into a brick wall. Riley scowled. 'Damn these brick walls, popping up all over the place.' It was only when the 'wall' grabbed her arms in a vice like grip did she look up, realising her mistake. 'Victor!' She said faintly. 'I was just…going…for a walk.'

'Okay, deadly ninja.' Wade said, grinning as he peered around Victor's arm. 'Guess what?'

'I don't want to guess.' Riley muttered, allowing herself to be dragged back to the compound by Victor. Wade walked cheerfully by her side.

'Just guess.'

'No.'

'Go on.'

'Shan't.'

'Please?'

'Go die.'

'Your dog's not dead.'

Riley stopped and looked up at him. 'Pudding's alive?' She gasped.

'Nah, just kidding,' Wade snorted. 'He's still dead as a doornail.'

Riley's face darkened and she glared at him heatedly. 'That's it,' she yelled. 'I'm fed up with you and him and that person over there!' She pointed to a spotty looking boy holding a pizza box. 'I'm leaving!'

'You can't,' Victor growled. 'You ain't gotta' choice.'

'Tough cookies.' Riley snarled, twisting away from Victor's harsh grip. At the same time she closed her eyes, easily shifting into her tiger form. Wade stared, Bradley stared, Victor's eyes narrowed and the pizza box boy scratched his head. With a flick of her tail, Riley bounded away, darting out of the open gate this time and sprinting away from the dumbfounded men.

'That'll be twenty one dollars twenty, please.' Pizza Box Boy said.


	8. Captured the Cat

**AN: Yeahh, kinda random, but ya' know, I was in a random mood and I had writers block and this was the only way to cure it. I know theres no obvious plot but it will come in…sometime. ;D And there is a special guest in there although I think she hates me now but ya' know, I'm not gonna edit her out cos she's awesome and she deserves something awesome (: Soo, enjoy ^^ **

Riley was sat on a bench in the middle of a field. It was an odd place to have a bench, she decided, because the field wasn't even a park it was just…a field. There was even a cow quietly grazing across from her and she watched as it slowly moved itself through the grass like some unofficial lawnmower. The funny thing was the cow was blue and Riley couldn't seem to work out why. A boy suddenly appeared and Riley blinked. He looked around, as if not sure where he was, and then he started to walk towards her. Riley twitched and she gazed up at him as he stopped in front of her. She wanted to stand but her legs felt like lead and wouldn't work. The cow mooed. The boy had leopard ears and a tail that was wrapped around his wrist. Riley tilted her head to one side.

'Hi.' He said.

'Hello.' Riley answered.

'Your name is Riley?' He asked.

Riley nodded, 'sometimes Stripes. And what do they call you?'

He shrugged. 'Spots, sometimes Spotty. I get really bad acne, you see.' He reached up and touched his cheek, as if realising it was there for the first time.

'This is a dream isn't it?'

'Yepp.'

'Yeah, it was pretty believable until that acne part.'

'Dammit, I knew that sounded too good to be true.' He scowled down at his trainers.

'It's okay.' Riley answered mildly. 'Can't have everything.'

'I'm afraid you're going to wake up,' he said. 'You have to keep running.'

Riley sighed. 'That's a shame.' She stated. The boy nodded sadly and then suddenly he was gone. She opened her eyes, blinking blearily and staring around the room she was in. The walls were blank, the paint crumbling and peeling away if you so much as brushed against it. The floor was a hard black wood and some of it splattered with a dark substance. Riley avoided those areas. She had arrived at the motel in the early hours of the morning, easily sneaking into an empty room through a window and quickly settled down into a deep sleep. It felt odd, without the reassuring deep breaths of James and the odd creaks and muffled noises from other rooms, something about the emptiness of the motel room made her feel sad and alone. For comfort, she curled her tail around her and pulled a pillow against her chest, uneasily falling back to sleep.

'I knew there was something weird about that chick.'

'Wade, shut up.'

'- a tiger? No wonder she didn't like those biscuits, shoulda' fed her raw meat.' He chuckled.

'Will you please be quiet?' Stryker snapped, glaring up at the man. 'For once?'

Wade grinned but he turned away from the group and stared out the window. Silence descended upon the room as Stryker shuffled through some papers and Victor sat casually with his legs crossed at the ankle. James was leant against the wall, looking uncomfortable with the situation they were in. The situation being he, and the two other men, had been ordered to track down Riley and bring her back, dead or alive. James couldn't imagine why Stryker was so adamant about having the girl back, in his opinion she was an annoying, insane cat-girl, hardly something he would want back. But no one card about his opinion, so he stayed quiet and stared at the wall across from him, his face pulled into a deep frown.

Finally Stryker was finished with his paperwork and looked up at the men, elbows resting on the desk and hard steel grey eyes examining them over interlocked fingers. 'She shouldn't be that hard to track down,' he began. 'She seems to have a knack for getting herself into trouble-,'

'So we just follow the disaster areas, right?' Wade interrupted, his eyes sparkling in excitement.

Stryker sighed but ignored the irritable man. 'Like I said, it shouldn't be hard.' At these words he looked hard at Victor who nodded lazily.

Wade grinned and stomped out the door. 'We're off to find the cat girl, the weird cat girl of, erm… Where does she come from again?'

Riley was wandering around like a lost puppy. She had been meaning to go back to the forest, back to her trees where she would continue throwing acorns at people until she fell out of a particularly high tree, break her neck and die. Unfortunately her plan hadn't gone quite as well as she had managed to lose her way and ended up in a busy shopping centre. She didn't like being in the shopping centre, it was crowded and stuffy and she couldn't find the exit no matter how many times she circled it like a caged animal. How she got in in the first place was a mystery.

It was on her third trip of the second floor that she saw them. James, Wade and Victor. They were standing outside a toyshop, looking manly and menacing and generally evil. Riley scowled and darted behind a tall pillar that was holding the roof up. How had they found her so fast? They wouldn't do anything in here though, not with all these people. A heavy hand landed on her shoulder and Riley shrieked, spinning round to see a smiling brown haired girl. The shriek had caused a few curious glances to be cast their way and the girl looked up at the men before she tugged Riley further behind the pillar.

'It's okay, I'm not gonna' kill you.' She said in a hope to reassure Riley. 'My name's Kat.' She smiled, her blue eyes sparkling. Riley looked her up and down, taking in her odd panda tee shirt and gray Converses.

'What do you want?' Riley asked her suspiciously.

'I'm going to help you.' Kat answered and grinned. 'Watch this.' She muttered and peered round the corner. Victor had disappeared but Wade and James were still stood outside the shop, a few cautious mothers eyeing them worriedly. Kat waved her hand and suddenly a large ball from inside the shop flew out and smacked James on the back of his head. He yelled out in shock, jumping forward and spinning round, hands clenched.

Riley giggled and clapped her hands together. 'Yay for magical powers!'

Kat rolled her eyes but grinned and she grabbed Riley's wrist. They turned and Riley was all prepared to get the hell out of there, had she not walked straight into Victor, who promptly grabbed her shoulder and wrenched her wrist out of Kat's grip. Riley glared up at him and went to kick him between the legs but he was faster, grabbing her leg leaving her hopping about on the spot in front of him.

'Let her go!' Kat demanded, also glaring sternly up at him.

Victor smirked. 'Or what?'

'Found you!' Wade suddenly shouted, appearing behind Victor, a small girl oddly clinging to his leg. Riley tilted her head to one side.

'What is _that?_'

'It's a kid.'

'Yeah, but what's it doing on your leg?'

'How should I know?'

'Because it's your leg…'

'Yeah, but it's not my kid, is it?'

'Isn't it?'

'No.'

'Then who's is it?'

'How should I know?'

'You already said that.'

'Well, I'm saying it again.'

'You can't double say things.'

'Who said?'

'Me.'

'Who're you?'

'The Queen of England.'

'Will you both just shut up!' Victor roared, glaring daggers at them both. 'Wilson, get rid of the kid,' he shifted his furious gaze back to Riley who smiled sheepishly. 'Get moving.'

'I just told you she ain't going anywhere!' Kat shouted, yanking Riley back to her.

It seemed Victor had had enough with everyone because he suddenly yelled out in anger and launched himself at the girl. She shrieked and scrambled to get away, but he easily grabbed her, tugging her back to him and with an annoyed snarl threw her over the balcony and into a large fountain below. There was a sickening crunch and the water turned red. Straight away people were screaming, children crying, the mall turned into chaos. Victor cursed under his breath and turned back to Riley who was staring up at him with wide eyes and a pale face, for once she had nothing to say.

'C'mon.' Victor muttered, grabbing her by the back of her collar and dragging her long. Riley followed meekly along behind him, Wade striding alongside her grinning like a maniac.

'Where are we going?' Riley asked, her courage picking up with every step.

'Back.'

'Back?'

'Yes. Back. Now be quiet.' Victor snapped and Riley's ears flattened back against her head.

'Just asking,' she muttered under her breath.

Wade sighed dramatically and slapped her on her back. 'Don't worry, Stripes, Victor's just on his man period.'


	9. Tracking the Kitty

**AN: Omnomnomnom. Sorry for the wait, bubs. I'm finally getting back on track with the whole, plot thing XD Sorry for the diversions, it's just me having fun ;3 Riley's character is hilarious to write. Anywwhoo, hope you like this chappie, I think some people are OOC ._. please, do let me know DX**

'I'm hungry.' Riley announced almost as soon as they had left the shopping centre.

Victor grunted, glaring down at her. 'Why didn't you say that when we were in there?' He growled, pointing angrily back at the buzzing building.

'I wasn't hungry in there.' Riley shrugged her thin shoulders, digging her heels into the ground stubbornly.

'That's stupid,' Victor muttered. 'C'mon.' Riley crossed her arms across her chest stubbornly and glared at him.

'I'll scream and then all these people,' she gestured around the car park. 'Will see you and then someone will have one of those mobile phone things and ring the police and then you'll be in trouble.' She smirked, sticking her chin in the air.

'She has got a point.' Wade commented while peeling a banana.

'Where did you get that?' Riley gaped.

'Found it.'

'Scruff.'

'Says the girl who eats cat biscuits.'

'Force fed.'

'Keep telling yourself that.'

'Go die.'

'Ladies first.'

Riley opened her mouth to retort with some witty reply but Victor swiftly cut her off as he grabbed the back of her top, dragging her back into the shopping centre. Wordlessly he directed her over to the nearest fast food restaurant. The teenager standing behind the counter held a similar resemblance to the pizza delivery boy. Riley immediately assumed most spotty teenagers worked around food described as fast. The boy didn't bat an eyelid at the two strange people who had just walked up to him, he just lazily looked them up and down, sighed heavily and opened his mouth.

'Can I take your order, please sir?' He said in a monotone, scratching a particularly red spot on the end of his nose. Victor grunted, nudging Riley forward. She grinned happily and planted her hands on the counter.

'Well,' she started, her eyes shone with mischief as she scanned the menu. 'I guess I would like some chicken nuggets, fries and a coke,' the boy's finger hovered over the keypad. 'An ice-cream, chocolate flavoured, three burgers, two cheese and one smothered in mustard. Two strawberry milkshakes and a chicken burger.' She cleared her throat.

'I-is, er, that all?' The boy said weakly.

Yes-,' Victor started but Riley held up her hand.

'I think some more fries are in order and maybe one of those pie thingys you do, you know?'

The boy blinked. 'Apple pie?'

'Yes!' Riley grinned. 'One of those.' She glanced up at Victor's furious expression. 'That is all.' She said sweetly.

Wade peered round, his eyes bulging at the sight of the loaded trays. 'Wow, why aren't you fat?'

Riley just smirked at him, dumped her trays into Victor's arms and sauntered off to find a seat. The man followed, scowling irritably. The odd group then seated themselves around the table and watched in amazement as Riley proceeded to devour everything on the table. She didn't show any sign of stopping, even after she had polished off the two cheeseburgers, swiftly moving onto the mustard burger. Wade leant over to James, his eyes wide.

'Do you think if I put my glove on the table, she'll eat it?' He grinned. 'I bet you five dollars she does.' James rolled his eyes and sighed, glancing up at the clock.

Ten minutes later and Riley leant back in her chair, smirking up at the dumbfounded men. She didn't look in the least bit fatter, you could still see the bones sticking out of her hips where her hoodie had ridden up. 'I need the loo.' She said cheerfully.

'You can't go.' Victor snarled.

Riley blinked. 'Why not?'

'Because I can't go.'

'Maybe you should go to a doctor, they help with that sort of thing.' She suggested, drifting ever closer to the ladies.

Wade snorted, earning a warning glare from the grumpy man. 'I mean, I can't let you out of my sight, and I can't go into that toilet with you.'

'But I really need to go!' Riley whined, almost dancing on the spot. 'I swear I'll come straight back out.'

Victor narrowed his eyes at her and James sighed. 'Just let her go, the sooner she does, the sooner we get out of this place.' He muttered, glaring at a woman who was staring at them.

'I think, I'm gonna' go over there.' Wade smirked, winking at the woman.

'Wade!' James snapped but the man wasn't listening and wandered away. In turn, Riley had also darted into the ladies toilets and was now frantically trying to yank the window open. An old lady went to ask her what she was doing, thought better of it and hurried out. The bathroom fell silent, leaving Riley to concentrate on yanking open the window and escaping. She only had a few minutes; Victor would soon suss out what she was doing and possibly tear her apart. But Riley wasn't about to give up now and eventually she was able to wrench the dodgy window open, receiving a loud creak from the rusty thing. It was hardly big enough for her, basically just a hole in the wall, and Riley's huge lunch hadn't helped but she managed to hitch herself up onto the sink, unwinding her tail from underneath her hoodie and using it to help her balance.

She was halfway out when bang on a door startled her, almost causing her to fall straight back into the sink. 'Christ's sake,' she muttered, glaring at the door. 'What?' She shouted.

'What the fuck you doin' in there?' Victor's gruff voice floated, or more like rampaged like a bull on steroids, in.

'You, er, don't wanna' know.' Riley snorted, muffling a giggle. There was an annoyed grunt and then it fell silent. Her ears twitched and she smirked, sliding slowly out of the rest of the window. A hiss of pain was released from her lips as her wrist caught on a rusty nail, leaving a streak of blood along her hand. Riley did a silent dance as her trainers hit the hard concrete of the alley outside.

'Nice moves you got there.'

Riley froze, looking up at the grinning face of Wade. He winked at her, leaning out of the toilets window. 'It would be wise if you came back in here, and we can pretend this whole thing never happened.' He remarked cheerfully.

'Make me.' Riley snapped, sticking her chin in the air.

Wade shrugged. 'Okay.'

The rest seemed to happen in a blur for Riley. In seconds she had transformed and was already bounding away down the street, ignoring the screams and shouts of the general public. She could feel Wade behind her, swords already out and possibly ganining on her. She thanked God Victor didn't know she had escaped yet, if there was anyone who had any chance of catching up with her, it would be him. She darted round a corner, the annoyed shouts of Wade drifting after her. She was losing him, easily, of course four legs were faster than two and with one last leap Riley was scrabbling up a wall and over the other side. She grinned a shark like grin and raced over the field, heading straight for the woods. She liked trees. Trees were safe.

Wade rested his hands on his knees, breathing heavily. James walked up beside him, a smirk on his face and a cigar hanging between his lips.

'Not very fit, are you?' He commented.

'Psshtt,' Wade straightened up, puffing out his chest. 'You can't get any fitter than me, and that girl, cat, _thing_, is fast ya' know?'

James raised a brow. 'I see.' He smiled. 'Better get after her then, Mr Muscle.'

'Why me?' Wade protested.

'Because obviously I'm not fit enough.'

The younger man grunted in annoyance, sliding his katana back into its sheath. 'Fine.' He grumbled. 'But you're coming with me, I can't die, I mean, if I die where would you be? You see, I bring this team together, I-,'

'Shut up and get moving.'

'Hey, who's the boss here?'

'Me.'

'Are you sure about that? I am the fittest.' Wade grinned. 'What do they call it? Survival of the fittest.'

'I am the oldest, so shut up and get movin',' James growled.

'Yes, but isn't ol' Victor older than you?'

James shrugged. 'He's gone ahead but we can catch him up if you'd rather.'

Wade blinked. 'So, which way, captain?' He smirked, giving James a mock salute.


	10. Cat Out

**AN: Meehh. Its short and confusing and crappy but the plots coming back so please don't shout at me ;[ I do try. And a lot of thanks to Kat ! She did lots in this chappie and ily ;3**

**Hope its ohkay ! Don't hate me! And fanks to all the reviewers, alerters, favouriters, I love you all so much. You keep me going ;3 Tell me watchu think ! 3**

Riley leant against the corner of a wall, her chest heaving as she panted heavily. She didn't know how far she had run, far enough she figured. She looked up, ears twitching and nose wrinkling at the sight of the dirty, deserted street. At least it was somewhere, though, and without another thought she darted down the road like a shadow, sticking to the alleys. Stumbling over the pot holes and keeping her head low, ears flat against her head, Riley chanced a glance behind her, looking back when it was too late. A sleeping dog jumped up at her, barking madly and trying to bite at her tail. Riley shrieked and batted at it frantically, dancing around on the spot. A ragged looking man appeared from the alley, waving around a used can, fingerless gloves swiping around.

'Bart, down!'

Mewing and hissing at the creature, Riley jumped up onto the nearby dumpster, tail arched up in the air and her eyes narrowed in danger and fright.

'He won't hurt you, Miss.' The man tried, grabbed the dog by the scruff of the neck and pulling him away. 'He just ain't used to strangers, see?' The two looked at one another, green eyes to a dull blue, like the deadened sky. The man was no more than 40, give or take, with a woollen hat and oversized coat, black boots scuffed with the silver toe showing through. 'You alright?'

She didn't say anything, climbing down from off the dumpster and glancing behind her nervously, expecting Victor to come charging at her any second. Only just hearing the man mutter 'Nice costume', Riley started off again with a shout of 'Distract that man.'

'What man? There ain't no-,' looking down at a growling Bart, the man followed the canines gaze towards a cloaked figure, abnormally long claws extended at the end of open arms. Sniffing the air, Victor glowered down at the dog, his dislike evident on his face, two pointed canines revealed from his sneering mouth. Disregarding the old man, Victor stalked down the alleyway, sidetracking the hobo as he stuck out his can.

'Spare some money, Sir?' He asked, voice quivering as he turned on himself and followed Victor. 'Anything. A dollar, a cent-,'

Spinning, claws grabbing the mans jacket before he had a chance to realise what was going on, Victor lifted him inches from the ground and brought him to his eye level. 'How about I spare you life?' He snarled, raising an eyebrow dangerously and chucking him back down onto the floor, already disappearing back out the alley as the hobo stumbled over his dog and hit the stone floor.

Riley had watched all this from a nearby park and she had to admit, was not impressed with the tramp's technique at distraction. With an unsatisfied grunt she backed away from the fence, her eyes narrowed at the stalking figure of Victor. He stopped, hesitated, sniffing the air cautiously. Riley froze, her heart beating wildly in her chest. She sighed in relief as he moved on, his eyes flickering over to her once but moving on swiftly. Chuckling to herself, Riley turned and darted away into the forest, well, she tried to but apparently today was not her lucky day.

'Riley?' Someone suddenly shrieked and the girl winced, casting a glare at the woman.

'Who the hell are you?' She growled.

'Oh, oh Robert,' the woman sobbed and clutched onto a man's arm. 'She doesn't even remember her own parents.'

Riley blinked. 'Parents?' She frowned thoughtfully. 'I thought I ate my parents…'

'Riley,' the man said tearfully and tried to grab her weakly. 'We were wrong, please come home.'

Riley glanced around nervously, shifting from foot to foot. Surely Victor had heard the woman's cry? It wasn't as if Riley was a common name, especially when screamed by distressed women. Ears flattening and eyes flashing dark, she turned back to the couple. 'Go away!' She hissed. 'Now! Before I throw things at you.'

'Oh, but we've finally found you, please come home, come back to us Riley.' The woman held out her hand dramatically but Riley merely rolled her eyes, retreating back from the scary people in front of her.

'I don't have time for you total randomers interrupting my getaway!' She cried. 'Now, please, leave me alone before he finds me!'

And with that being said, the cat girl turned and stomped off down the park, grumbling miserably to herself. How could they have found her? They obviously wouldn't magically be in that park at the very precise moment she was. Maybe someone told them…maybe Stryker did to slow her down! But how would he know she was going to go through the park. Maybe she was too paranoid. Grumbling to herself like an old man, Riley kept her head down and her hood up. She didn't fancy getting caught a second time, not after what resulted in death before.

'I liked that girl as well.' She muttered.

How was it that everyone around her seemed to spontaneously die sometime or other. Riley sighed; maybe she was a bad omen. It's a good thing, she decided, that she was going back to the forest, no one would find her there ever again and then no one would die a horrible and painful death. With a large grin at her new plan, Riley skipped, her hood flew back and without warning she skipped right into the middle of the road.

She didn't see the car. Nor did it see her. And in two seconds flat it had hit her. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The car's tires squealed against the tarmac as it desperately tried to stop and Riley turned, eyes wide, her mouth gaping. She was literally, a deer caught in headlights. Someone shouted, screamed, and then suddenly Riley was flying. Tumbling over the bonnet and landing with a crunch behind the car.

'She just…ran…is…okay?' The voices were faint and faces blurred in the sky before her like clouds.

Riley tried to move but she couldn't, she couldn't even blink, she just lay there. The crowd parted and someone else came, arms slipping under her and she was lifted into a strong embrace. Her head was against a chest and she could hear their heart pumping steadily against her ear. It was a strange feeling but she liked it and she found herself snuggling closer to the warmth, like a furry tabby cat. The thought didn't occur to her that she didn't know who's arms she was in, all she knew that the warmth that radiated from the body calmed her throbbing head and soothed her aching body. Darkness was descending on her swiftly and Riley was finding it hard to keep her focus. Something warm trickled down her face and the shouting became fainter, her vision blurring.

'Take her.' Someone said and Riley felt herself slipping out of the arms and onto leather. She whined, clinging closer to the warmth and the person hesitated before she was pulled closer to them.

A rumbling sound came from beneath them and Riley's ears twitched. She flinched as a thumb gently smoothed over the soft fur and with a gentle purr she allowed herself to fall away into the dark.

Riley blinked. She was lying down and when she opened her eyes she found herself staring straight up at a bright white ceiling. A thin sheet covered her tiny body and looking down at her arm she noticed multiple needles sticking into her arms. She sat up, wincing at the pain that racked through her body. A movement caught her eyes and she shrieked, staring at the man in front of her bed.

'Good morning, Riley.' He smiled, hands folded behind his back.

Riley narrowed her eyes. 'Am I dead?'

'No, you are not dead.' Stryker moved around to stand by the side of her bed. 'You are merely heavily sedated. After you were hit by the car, Wade found you and brought you back here.'

Riley snorted. 'Thanks for that short insight into the past few hours.' She rolled her eyes. 'Can I go now? I need my daily intake of jelly babies. I like ripping their heads off, it's fun and-,'

'Riley,' Stryker interrupted, his voice cold and stern. 'You are not going anywhere. I'm afraid you have been more trouble than I anticipated.' The door opened and a doctor walked in, fiddling with a clipboard. Stryker smirked, picking up a needle and flicking it menacingly.

Riley's tail flicked nervously and she tried to lift her arm but found it was strapped down to the bed. 'I - I don't understand,' she whispered, her eyes wide. 'What are you doing? I want the jelly babies!' Riley was starting to panic, her image flickering between that of a tiger and a girl.

'You must calm down, Riley,' Stryker sighed. 'The treatment may have some dangerous affects if you work yourself up.' He stepped back as the doctor came towards her, holding the needle against her arm.

But Riley didn't want to calm down. She didn't want to be treated like some lab rat. She shrieked and screamed and writhed about on the bed, so much so the doctor had to retreat for fear of having his eyes clawed out. Eventually the door opened and Fred appeared, along with Victor and Wade. Victor took her wrists, pinning them above her head, while Wade and Fred took a leg each. Fred didn't look too happy to be there but he held her down tight all the same. Riley didn't cry though, as the poison was injected into her veins, she refused to, and as it took affect she became calmer and calmer until she was half asleep. The weight was lifted from her limbs and she stared up at Stryker through heavy lidded eyes.

He smiled. 'Goodbye, Riley.' And with that, the world faded away.


	11. Cat's Cradle

**AN: Sorry for the wait (: Life is a troublesome thing at my age. Deep words, I know. Continue. Oh, and sorry if I got people mixed up, times, dates ect. I did try to make it fit so the right people would be at the mansion at the time. If I've got something wrong, or you have something to add on, please do let me know. I'd really appreciate it.**

**Thank you, reviewers, I love you more than you know. 3**

_Riley…Riley, wake up._

Images flickered past. A tiger, a man with twin swords. She twitched, her eyes widening beneath closed lids. That voice…it was so smooth, so reassuring. She wanted to hear it again, delving into her deepest memories to find it, to let her know everything was going to be okay. She didn't know what was going on. Where was she? What was happening to her? No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't seem to recall anything. There was no noise around her, nothing to distinguish, no smells or tastes. It was like her mind was a blank canvas waiting to be filled. And so she did the thing any normal person would do in this type of situation. She opened her eyes.

The first thing she noticed was she was lying down on a bed, a clean white sheet covering the lower half of her body. She wasn't strapped down, nor handcuffed to the bed, she was just…there. There were all sorts of tubes sticking out of her body, connecting to lots of scary machines. Riley glared at them, as if it was there fault she was stuck there. She swung her feet over the side and planted them on the cold floor. Slowly she stood on shaky legs, gripping unsteadily onto the bed frame. She blinked, once, twice, before raising one of her hands and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Outside the room was a corridor, which she could see clearly through a glass window. It was deserted and quiet, too quiet for Riley's liking but the inquisitive side of her took over and she slowly made for the door. Placing one hand against the cool smooth glass she was sudden overcome by a wave of memories, each of them washing over until they were playing in front of her eyes like a film. She dropped to the floor and clutched her head. Whimpers of agony passed her lips, tears dripping down her cheeks.

She didn't know how long she stayed like that, drifting in and out of conscienceness. The sound of voices drifted to her sensitive ears and she raised her head, manouvering her body into a crouch. Footsteps brought the voices closer, heading her way down the corridor. She narrowed her eyes and gripping the ledge underneath the window, she peered up over.

'Told you she was freaky looking.'

'Gosh,' a blonde girl looked on, her eyes wide. 'You're right.'

Riley shrieked in shock and slipped, falling back onto her bum. She shuffled away from the two, her back hitting the bed. This also startled her, causing her to fly sideways into a tray of operational tools. The tools crashed to the ground, the rolling table they were on skidding across the floor and slamming into a shelf of medical books. All three pair of eyes were on the shelf as it swayed dangerously before there was a creak and it crashed unceremoniously to the ground. Riley swallowed, turning a full circle to look at the destroyed room. She came to a stop in front of the two kids who were staring open mouthed. She shrugged helplessly, her tail nervously curling behind her. Riley had been in many sticky situations before but the way the two were staring at her in astonishment unnerved her to no end and she found the incredibly urge to just run away.

'Scott, Emma, don't you two have somewhere to be?' A man was walking towards them, a friendly smile on his face. He seemed nice enough but there was an air of authority around him and Riley didn't fail to notice the way the two seemed to react with immediate respect. He turned, his blue eyes glancing at her. 'I see our guest has finally awoken.' Riley's eyes narrowed. 'I'm think there's a basketball game going on, I'm sure they could use your expertise.' The two got the hint and hurried away from the room. Riley watched cautiously as the man typed a code into a keypad, the door opening with a hiss.

'Good afternoon, Riley,' he started. 'I'm Charles Xavier and-,'

'Where am I?' She interrupted, her hands planted firmly on her hips.

'You're at my school and I can assure, you are perfectly safe here.' His amused eyes scanned the room. 'Although I don't know if it's safe from you.'

Riley frowned. 'I didn't do it! It was them.' She pointed in the direction Scott and Emma had disappeared.

'I see.' He gestured to the door. 'Would you like breakfast or answers first?'

'Answers?'

'I assume you must have a lot of questions.'

Riley bit her lip. It was true, she was wondering a lot of things, such as how she had got to this strange place and just where was Stryker? But the main thing on her mind was how could she trust this man she had never seen before in her life.

_You trusted Stryker, didn't you?_

She shrieked and jumped back at the sound of his voice in her mind. He smiled. 'Come, you must be hungry.'

OOoooOOoooOOOooOOooOoo

Scott sat across the table from Riley. He couldn't seem to take his eyes off of her. His mouth was open as he stared, in a slightly disgusted manner. Professor Xavier had left her in his charge, to help her get used to the place while she processed the newly received information about her life. Immediately she had demanded food, her nose wrinkling at the sight of the sandwich Scott had served up. Already annoyed by the fact she was his new tag along, he had left her to it and watched in amazement as she practically destroyed the kitchen. Now before her were three ketchup sandwiches, a plate of raw steak, two chocolate milkshakes and a family size pack of crisps. Scott just hoped she wasn't preparing for dessert.

'So,' he started awkwardly. She didn't stop eating. 'You're name's Riley, right? I'm Scott.'

She nodded.

'You worked for Stryker, didn't you?' He tried tentatively. She hadn't spoken a word about what Xavier had told her, about what had happened to her. The only thing he knew was that she used to be on Stryker's team.

'Yepp.' She answered, almost too cheerfully. She grabbed the ketchup bottle and started dousing her steak in it. 'I was only in it for the money.'

'I didn't know you got paid.'

'We didn't.'

'Oh.'

'Nice beds, though.' She grabbed a fork and started viciously stabbing the steak, ketchup splattering everywhere.

Scott searched his mind for something say. Anything was better than falling back into that awkward silence. 'Do you…miss it?' He asked, sounding like a moron.

'Do I miss running around with a bunch of too big men who shared their brainpower between them?' She paused in her chewing and thought about it, before smiling. 'Not really.'

Scott managed a small smile. 'Shall I show you round, then?'

OOoooOooOOooOO

There was a small knock on the door and a girl with fiery red hair peered round. 'Professor?'

Xavier looked up and smiled; putting down a file he was holding. 'Jean, come in, sit down. What can I do for you?'

She entered the room, gently closing the door behind before sitting down into the chair across from him and fixing him with a stern glare. 'It's about the new girl,' Jean knew Riley had nothing to do with her and neither did Xavier's decisions about whether she would stay or not, but Jean wasn't one to let her opinion go unheard. 'Are you sure it's safe to allow her to stay, Professor? After all, she was working for that man.'

The Professor sighed. 'I know having Riley here is a risk but I have had her word that she will not harm anyone here.' Riley's actual words had not been quite so sincere but Xavier was willing to overlook that.

'And you believe her?' Jean said skeptically.

'I believe _in _her, Jean,' he smiled at his student. 'She hasn't had the normality that most of us here have had and I do believe that with a bit of kindness she will settle in well here.'

Jean didn't look convinced but she nodded all the same. 'I hope you're right.'

OOOooOOoooOOOooo

'What's that?' Riley demanded, pointing at a barn.

'That's where the horses are.' Scott answered wearily. He had been running around after her for the past hour, answering her many questions and hurriedly talking her out of fights with the other students.

'Why're there horses?'

He ran a hand through his hair. 'I don't know.'

'To ride, obviously.' Riley rolled her eyes, already power walking over to it.

'If you knew the answer why did you ask?' He frowned, hurrying to catch up with her.

'I was testing you,' Riley replied happily. 'And you failed!' She skidded to a halt in front of the huge barn doors, peering into the airy building. A horse swung its head over the stall door, its nostrils flaring at the sight of her. 'I don't think it likes me.' Riley pondered. She went to go nearer to it but a girl appeared at the other end of the aisle, her hands resting firmly on her hips.

'Scott? What are you doing here?' Her words were directed at him but her cold glare was on Riley, who was creeping closer to the horse. It snorted, it's ears flattening against his head. 'You're unsettling him.' Emma snapped.

'He looks fine to me.' Riley stuck out her chin.

'It's your smell.' The girl continued, walking closer to them.

Riley frowned. 'Really? I swear I put deodorant on…'

'I meant, you smell like a predator to him,' Emma rolled her eyes.

'Oh, I see, he's scared I'll rip his throat out and devour him whole.' Riley's eyes glittered with amusement. 'Come to think of it, I am quite hungry.' Her voice trailed off and her tail twitched.

'What?' Scott said sharply, coming to stand beside her.

She giggled. 'Don't mind me! Continue your..er, flirting!' With that being said she bounded away before Scott could stop her. He looked at Emma who was blushing furiously.

'She's,' he rubbed the back of his head. 'She doesn't now what it means.'

Emma nodded. 'O-of course.' She stammered, letting her hair hide her face from view.

Outside someone screamed followed by hysterical laughter and a huge crash. Scott hurried out of the barn.


	12. Cat for a Cat

**AN: I'm sorry. My only excuse is life. Forgive me. Ya'll deserve more.**

Riley had left Scott and Emma to do whatever she assumed they wanted to do. She didn't like the horses anyway and she was pretty sure they didn't like her. She smirked, storing this information away for later. She knew she didn't have long before that boy, Scott, would come looking for her. He confused her; why was he always wearing those glasses? It wasn't even sunny. She miserably kicked a stone out of her path and glanced around the large gardens. Being here was like a prison, walls surrounded the place, covered by trees and bushes, but she knew they were there. The large steel gate was constantly locked. It made Riley wonder else they had to keep people from getting out, or maybe from someone coming in. Albeit, it was better than being at Stryker's but with Stryker there was always something going on and as much as she hated to admit it; it was fun. Professor Xavier had told her that being her would mean she would have to attend lessons and sometimes do her fair share of chores. She didn't like the idea of sitting in a dreary classroom listening to some teacher drone on.

A rustling in the bushes attracted her attention and she looked up, her ears twitching. 'Hello?' She crept closer to the foliage, peering in between the leaves. Brown eyes stared back at her. There was something familiar, a warm and yet adventurous gleam she'd seen before. 'Wade? She asked, the eyes twinkled mischievously. 'Wade!' She shrieked, grinning for the first time she had been at the school, but the man disappeared within a flash.

Disappointment settled in her stomach like a rock and she didn't even notice as Scott grabbed her arm, his face red from running from the barn. 'Are you okay?' He demanded, eyes wide, anxious to know he hadn't yet killed the new girl.

Riley glared at him. 'You made him go away!' She snapped and pointed an accusing finger up at the startled boy.

'What?' He frowned. 'Who go away?'

'I'm bored. It's boring here. Isn't there anything to do?' She said flatly, raising an eyebrow at him.

Scott shrugged helplessly. 'You could go to your class?'

Riley's face brightened considerably. 'Okay!'

'You call _this_ learning?'

She was stood on the edge of a field, watching as a group of teenagers ran up the field and disappeared onto a forest track. Scott had brought her to her first lesson and she had been sorely disappointed. Having been forced into a pair of ugly shorts and an overly large tee shirt, she had expected a lot more than just…running. The sports teacher, a large, heavyset man who looked like the only running he did was to the fridge and back, had grinned overenthusiastically at her and told her to, 'hop, skip and jump, bucko.' Riley had threatened to tear out his throat.

'C'mon, Riley,' Scott said. 'It's not that bad. Once Coach can't see you, you can walk.'

'Then what's the point in doing it at all, if you just _cheat_?' She fired back, glaring fiercely at him.

'Never mind.' Scott finally snapped. 'Just sit here and watch then.' Without looking back he ran off up the field and Riley was left with the fat man.

'Peanut?' He said, offering her a greasy bag.

Riley ran. She cursed Scott for being a moody teenager, cursed Mother Nature for making the ground wet and muddy, and she cursed Stryker for leaving her here. Her feet hit the ground heavily as she made it up into the forest and her breath came in short breaths. Although she was apparently healthy, being in the coma for that long had taken it's toll on her and a stitch grew in her side, painfully forcing her to walk. Now she was cheating. She kicked the ground in annoyance, sending dozens of orange leaves flying into the air and probably some poor hedgehog that had been hibernating. A cracking noise pierced her sensitive ears and she winced, spinning in a full circle. She sniffed but the wind was messing with her senses and she could hardly smell anything. Someone was there, she could hear them, as carefully as they wanted to tread. Her heart lifted.

'Wade?' She said quietly. Please let it be him, she thought, a familiar face, a _friendly_ face. Another creak and she jumped, her heart pounding. 'Whoever you are I'm a ninja and I have..a…a very big dog.'

'I'd recognise your face anywhere, mon cherie.' A deep voice said and Riley turned to see a smirking man leaning against a tree. He wore a black hat down low over his face so it was hard to see who he was.

'Who're you?' Riley demanded, glaring at him.

'Name's Remy, or Gambit to my enemies.' He flashed her a smirk and that trademark smolder he reckoned worked on any woman in his path.

Riley simply placed her hands upon her hips and narrowed her eyes. 'I'm not telling you my name. You could be an identity thief!' She pointed an accusing finger at him.

Gambit faltered, his hat tipping up slightly. 'I...My name is…Don't you want to know where I know you from?' He tried, his expression turning mysterious again.

'Well make it snappy, fatman will be wondering where I've got to.' Riley was in an increasingly bad mood and no amount of enigmatic strangers was going to change that. Anyway, she had gotten used to having handsome looking men popping out of nowhere.

'You worked for Stryker.' He said bluntly, dropping the act, and she saw his eyes flash an odd colour. Immediately her guard was up.

'No I didn't.' She snapped back.

'I saw you.'

'You're lying.'

'No, I'm not.'

'Stop being mean.'

'Why would I lie?'

'I can destroy you with a single thought.'

Gambit sighed and rubbed his head. 'You're not worth this much trouble.' He muttered under his breath.

'Did the fatman send you? Are you going to tell him I cheated?' Riley looked panicked. 'It was all Scott's idea, you know.'

He found himself pacing, a hand to his throbbing temple. Never had one person, one single girl ever been so… infuriating, frustrating, exasperating! She watched him with big, round eyes; a doe in the headlights.

Just as Riley's lips opened, hovered on a word, some quirky little joke that she'd think would calm the moment, Gambit stopped pacing. 'You don't belong here.' He said slowly, darkly. Eyes downcast, he waited for a response, for feet to move off as she disappeared. Nothing.

'I didn't quite catch that.' She said, still chirpy, although her eyes were cautious, the ears on the top of her head twitching anxiously.

'You don't belong here!' Gambit snarled, pointing a hand at her. Something fizzled at the end of his fingers, a red light streaming from fingertip to fingertip. 'This place - anywhere! You don't belong! You need to go. You need to pack and get away!'

Something in Riley's stomach twisted nervously, ears flattened against her head. 'W-What-'

'GET OUT OF HERE!'

She jumped and was off like a beaten dog, ears flat and tail between her legs. Her mind was whirling as she ran, her heart beating in time to the shaky steps she took. She didn't know whom Gambit was, what he wanted, or where he had come from, but his words had scared her. He had sounded so angry, so full of hate for her. She stopped and put her hands on her knees, only just realising how tired she was. A crow cawed up above and she jumped. Was he following her? Was he going to kill her? A snarl bubbled up over her lips and her eyes turned dark. If he came back, _she_ would kill _him_; then they'd see who didn't belong. The crow scattered from the branches and screeched its way up into the sky. Riley's senses were on high alert; her ears pricked and her tail taut. Her muscles tensed as a branch to the left creaked and her eyes slowly slid sideways. With a growl, she launched herself off her back legs and soared through the air. She landed on his chest, her small hands wrapped around his neck as she hissed and growled down at him. He shouted out in surprise, his hands finding her shoulders and he tried to push her away. It took Riley a moment to find she was staring down at her own reflection in a pair of red glasses.

'Scott!' She announced happily.

'Riley!' He choked. 'Get off me, you lunatic!'

She darted back sheepishly, wrapping her arms around her knees as she watched him cough and splutter on the muddy ground. 'I've been looking all over for you.' He finally said in exasperation. 'How hard is it to stay on the track?'

Riley smiled, careful to make sure she gave nothing away of her previous encounter. 'I guess I just got lost.' She shrugged helplessly and chuckled.

Scott looked at her oddly, but he didn't seem to notice anything different. He got to his feet and brushed down his shorts. 'C'mon,' he said, holding his hand out to her. 'It's lunch.' Riley took his hand and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. They walked back together in a comfortable silence and Scott found it eerie, her being so quiet for once.

'Hey Scott,' she said to the entrance to the school, 'can I ask you something?'

'Sure.' He answered, glancing down at her.

'Do you know…where Stryker is?' She asked quietly, so quietly it was almost a whisper.

Scott tensed and avoided her eye, his jaw clenching. 'No, I don't,' he replied. 'Don't you remember how you got here?' She shook her head, bright eyes urging him to go on. He sighed. 'The man, Creed, brought you. He walked with you in his arms, right up the driveway. He told the Professor that you were dying, that you had to live, and then he left. Just like that. You've been here ever since.'

'How long?' Her voice cracked.

'Two years.' Scott replied dully.


	13. This Kitty Has Claws

**AN: Sorry for the wait, lovelies. Life caught up with me, I guess. Hope you've stayed xo**

* * *

Riley lay flat out on the bed, listening to the steady tick of the clock as the minutes, hours, passed by. Supper had been a blur of faces and introductions. Most people had stayed clear of her, thinking she didn't notice the wary glances they shot her  
way. She had tried to steer clear of anyone, ignoring Scott when he waved her over and sitting down on her own with a carton of milk. Her mind was still reeling from the information Scott had told her. No doubt the 'Creed man' was Victor but why? Why would he go to all that trouble just to save _her_ life? It hurt her brain to think about it all. She could hardly remember the last time she had stayed so still just to think. She stared at a crack in the wall, following it down until it disappeared under the skirting board. Two whole years she had been here, in this school, getting better, living.

They had all probably forgotten about her by now. Too be fair she wasn't easily forgotten but she doubted they missed her. She sighed and rolled over, glaring at the window. It was boring here. Nothing happened, ever. Everyone was too serious and educated and _smart_. Riley was smart but she didn't flaunt it, she just went along in her own little world, pretending to be not smart when really she knew everything. She might as well have been a mind reader.

'Okay, what's up with you?' Scott said as he opened the door.

Riley shrieked. 'Oh my God, get out of my bubble!'

'I'm not in the your bubble.'

She narrowed her eyes. 'Why are you here?'

Scott shrugged. 'The Proffesor's worried about you, thought I'd drop in and make sure you were okay.' He smiled and Riley almost flinched.

'You…You care?'

Rolling his eyes, he walked forward and sat down on the bed beside her. 'Not everyone is an enemy, y'know.'

'Not everyone's a friend.' She replied, picking at the stitching in the duvet. 'You think they are, you put all your trust in them and then,' she shrugged, 'they're not.'

'What did they do to you Riley?' He murmured. 'What did they make you do?'

She chose to ignore this and jumped up from the bed. 'I've decided to go on an expedition!' She cried.

'An expedition!'

'Yes!'

'To where?'

'To there!'

'Where?'

'There! Where they are!' she pointed wildly out the open window.

'Who? Stryker?'

Riley sighed exasperatedly and rolled her eyes. 'Who else? I'm going to find them, and kill them all.' She was joking of course. Both of them knew that, there was no way Riley could take down a whole base of men by herself. In fact, she knew herself she wouldn't even try. But no one else knew that. To them, she was a mentally unstable girl, who would do anything to have her revenge.

Neither of them heard the rustle in the bushes outside of Riley's window.

* * *

'She said she was coming back to kill us all.' Wade informed and Victor snorted.

'She couldn't just stay away,' Stryker scowled. He looked at Victor and Wade. 'I want you to find her and make sure she never talks again.'

James raised an eyebrow. 'You don't even know she'll come here – in fact, she probably won't. She knows she can't kill us all.'

Wade's expression brightened. 'Shall we cut out her tongue and feed it to her?'

'I don't care if she's coming back or not. I don't care if she's lost her memory. She's too much trouble to leave alive. Just kill her.' Stryker sighed and rubbed his forehead. The prospect of the soon to be dead girl though, lifted some of the frown lines off all of their faces.

* * *

Riley lay dozing on the roof. She wanted a tan. Emma had a tan. So she wanted a tan. It was summer after all, and what was summer without a tan? It was perfectly normal to sunbathe for a tan and the quickest way would be to lie on the roof. That was after all, closest to the sun. she had stolen a pair of shorts from Emma's room and was wearing her usual tank top. On her head she had a giant sunhat that was more like a sombrero. The Professor had leant her it, though why he had it, she had no idea. He wasn't Mexican. She had found a pair of bright yellow flip flops in the cupboard and had an old pair of Scott's sunglasses on. She was ready for some serious tanning.

She was up there the whole day. From when the sun rose, to when it was just setting over the faraway hills. Riley was pretty confident she was brown as a nut and she sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the mansion. It was Scott, as usual, who found her.

'Riley, what are you doing up there? And why are you so red?'

'I am tanning, dear Scott.' Riley rolled her eyes. 'And I am not red, I am obviously brown.'

Emma sauntered round the corner, blonde hair swishing. Riley narrowed her eyes. 'Hey, are those my shorts?' She called.

'No.' Riley muttered and crossed her arms over her chest. Suddenly a familiar scent hit her nostrils and she stiffened.

Scott shrugged. A small crowd was gathering down below. 'C'mon Riley, it's supper now.'

'I can't, Scott. I have just been informed I am awaiting a certain death.'

'What is she on about?' Someone murmured.

'She's so insane, it's scary.'

'I don't know what the Professor was thinking, letting her stay here.'

Riley ignored them and stared at the horizon. Her blood ran cold and she drew her legs up to her chest, glancing over her shoulder. They were coming. It wouldn't be long now. She knew now, why. It had been Wade in the forest, and he had followed her. Listened to what she had said about coming to kill them. And now _they_ were coming to kill _her_.

She glanced down again. 'I'd rather be up here than down there with you losers.' She remarked.

'Charming,' Emma snapped.

'If you all stay there you're going to die.' She said it in almost a sing song.

This news dispersed most of them quickly enough and soon only Scott and Emma remained. Emma tugged on Scott's arm but he was still staring up at where Riley sat stubbornly.

'What do you mean, Riley? Should I get the Professor?'

'What good would that do? This is the end. The end of me. The end of life as we know it. In a few short minutes I will be dead,' her voice wavered slightly, 'and no one will remember me, so no one should save me. Because I am no one.'

She took a deep breath after her little speech, smiled sadly, and then closed her eyes. Her body shifted, her sense heightening. Below her came a gasp. Gracefully, she jumped from the roof and landed skillfully. With a sort of wink at Scott, she bounded away across the lawns.

They were waiting for her at the gates. As if they knew she was coming. She knew that would have been fairytale thinking. They had just been stalled in the way of getting over the gates without causing too much of a racket. But seeing them seemed to calm her nerves slightly. She moved silently through the forest and leapt the wall, coming up behind them, where she sat like an Egyptian sphinx and waited for one of them to notice her. It was Victor who did, with all his catlike senses she would have been disappointed if he hadn't. He looked at her and she looked back, blinking slowly. He didn't move, or tell the others, he simply watched and Riley contemplated the thought that maybe he was giving her time to run. But she was done running. She was tired. It was only him, Wade and James. The others must have been busy. Probably making more disgusting sandwiches. She smiled which looked more like she was bearing her teeth.

'Wade.' Victor said gruffly. The man in question turned and grinned, sliding out his twin swords.

'Hello kitty,' he smirked, 'come to play?'

Riley growled. Her tail flicked from side to side.

'She's just a kid.' James muttered.

Wade snorted. 'She's more than that. She's like the devil reincarnated.'

'The devil can't be reincarnated 'cos he never died, stupid.'

They all looked at her in surprise.

'You would have been safer in the other form, kitty cat.'

'Psht, I can take you morons on, any day of the week.' She held her arms out and smirked. 'Bring it.'


	14. Nine Lives

Wade didn't need asking twice. He winked and then he lunged. He spun and his katanas were a blur to Riley's eyes. She dodged and the air whooshed past her ears. One second later and she would have been headless. She straightened up and turned on her heel, jumping into the air and slamming both feet into his back. He stumbled forwards but reached out behind him, grabbing her ankle and dragging her down. She crashed into the concrete, her spine cracking on the hard surface. He smirked down at her and lifted his sword, but she twisted, kicking up with her foot and catching him in the jaw. He released her in surprise and she backed up, smiling sweetly at him. He narrowed his eyes and she shrugged lightly, giving off the impression it was nothing. Suddenly he swung and caught her off guard. The sharp edge of one of his swords sliced through the bottom of her shirt and she hissed in pain, looking down at the cut before glaring back up at him. It was a shallow cut but it still bled profusely and Wade winked again. Riley realised he was toying with her, letting her tire herself out. She snarled out of the corner of her mouth and her eyes turned dark.

'What's up, kitty?' Wade taunted. 'Going too fast for ya'?'

In seconds, where she had stood was a tiger and Wade blinked. His grip tightened on his swords and his smirk disappeared in a flash. The two circled each other, neither breaking eye contact and neither making a move. In a blur of black and white, the tiger leapt forward and took a swipe at him with one huge paw. Sharp claws dug into the back of Wade's leg and he howled, slamming his fist into the side of it's head. The tiger growled and Wade flicked his sword round, driving the point into the animal's paw. Its jaws snapped at his wrist and it retreated, favouring its injured paw and hissing up at the man.

'Hurry up, Wade,' Victor snapped from the sidelines, 'we don't have all day.'

Standing beside him, James looked troubled. 'We don't have to kill her.' He muttered, eyes focused on the fight as the tiger, or Riley, stood up on its hind legs and took a swipe at Wade's head. He ducked and a small smirk crossed his face as he brought his swords round. They sliced in perfect sync across the tiger's torso, meeting in the middle. It roared in pain and surprise and dropped to the ground, rolling onto its side. Blood seeped from a large cut in it's middle and it growled, struggling to its feet.

But Wade grabbed a gun from his belt, holding it steady between the animal's eyes. 'Not this time, kitty cat.' He murmured.

The tiger stopped its groaning and its ear twitched. Then it seemed to smile and its teeth got shorter, until Riley laid there, her hand pressed tightly to her stomach. She was smiling but it was pained and she gritted her teeth.

'That's cheating.' She whispered, gesturing with her head to the gun.

Wade shrugged. 'I don't remember setting any rules.'

Her eyes flickered from Wade to Victor, and then to James. The pain in her eyes was unbearable, and the man had to look away. Many times he had seen the spark die from someone's eyes, watched as their fight drifted away and they came to accept their fate. But watching it happen to Riley was like watching an abused puppy. He turned to Victor. 'Don't, just walk away, don't kill her.' He glared.

Victor looked at him and smirked. 'Wade-,' he started but James grabbed his brother's collar and slammed him up against a tree. Victor grabbed his shoulders and they glared into each other's eyes.

'She's sixteen years old.' James hissed between gritted teeth.

'Never stopped you before.' Victor spat back.

Slowly, James let go of his brother and stepped back, shaking his head. He could see there was no use changing the man's mind. 'I'll meet you back at the island.' He mumbled before turning and walking away through the forest.

'I always wanted to die doing something amazing, y'know.' Riley said, it was clear from the sound of her voice it was becoming harder for her to talk. She shifted position on the ground and winced in pain, a tear slipping from the corner of her eye. Blood seeped out from underneath her hand.

'You were fighting me, doesn't that cover it?' Wade grinned. Although there was something odd about his smile and he cleared his throat, looking to Victor.

The older man nodded. Wade looked back down to Riley. She swallowed and took a deep breath, curling her tail around her wrist. He pulled the trigger. Birds flew from their nests, screeching into the sky, and in the midst of their noise could be heard the quiet thump of a body falling to the ground. In the forest, James paused. He shook his head and then carried on. Wade shoved his gun back into the waistband of his trousers. He watched the lifeless body for a while, watching as the blood spread around it like a flower, staining white fur. And then, he too, turned and walked away.

'Guess it was her ninth life, huh.'

* * *

She lay there alone through the night. No cars came, no one came. She was just a lifeless body. One more name to be forgotten. When the moon was full and bright in the sky, a rustle came from the forest beyond. No reaction came from the girl, as none was expected. Wade walked from the trees and stopped beside her. He looked down at her, a small smile gracing his face. He leant down and gently closed her bright blue eyes, pushing the hair from her face. With a satisfied nod, he turned and left.

* * *

The next morning, when Riley hadn't returned, Scott had walked out of Biology class. He ignored the shouts of his classmates behind him, he even banished his thoughts of Xavier's voice. He just walked. He scrambled up a tree that leant against the wall and jumped over. He slipped on the other side, grazing his palms on the concrete. He looked up to the empty road, his expression desperate.

'Riley!' He called.

It was then he noticed the unusual lump in the concrete. He frowned and walked towards it. Metres away, he realised what it was. He swallowed and took a step back, but no, he had to go forward. He walked to her side and dropped to his knees, holding her head in his hands.

'Riley?' He whispered. 'C'mon, Riley, I got some peanut butter and steak.' His voice was hoarse. He could have saved her, if he had gone after her earlier, helped her. But he knew deep down there was no saving her, no matter for how long he hid her, how far she ran. They would always find her. She looked peaceful, lying there, and he smiled through his tears. He had hardly known her and yet she had made life just that bit more exciting, more unpredictable.

'See you, Riley.'

* * *

**AN: I cried writing this, haha. I know its short and rushed, but I honestly didn't want to drag it out. And I'm dying of flu, I'm just happy people have stayed with this fic and all it's madness. Its probably the last one I'll do without having a clue where I'm going with it, you can see why :') Anyway, I love you all, people I have never met, probably more than people I have met. Stay beautiful xo**


End file.
